Nightblade III - Defining Strength
by KnightEstoc
Summary: Strength. Kazuto has it. Asuna has it. The woman I love has it. So, what is it? ...I'm, uh, asking for some friends. Totally. Describe them? ...Uh, one's about this tall, carries a big sniper rifle. The other's really, really good with a sword. Know them?
1. (Virtual) Reality

**Chapter 1: (Virtual) Reality**

* * *

 **December 7** **th** **, 2025**

"Well, the map says I'm in the right place," I muttered.

Cutting the engine on my bike, I hit the kickstand and leaned it over, swinging my leg up and over to stand lightly on the curb; I pulled my helmet off and locked it to the bike before pulling the keys from the ignition and placing them in my pocket. I shook my head to make a small attempt at fixing my helmet hair, but since it's not like I really cared about it at all I eventually just ran my fingers through my hair and called it a day. I should probably get a haircut soon, but Kana did say she liked me with slightly longer hair... I'll ask her when I see her later today. Glancing at my phone one last time, I scanned over the address the agent had given me that morning. "Yeah, this is the place. Hope whatever he wants to talk about doesn't take too long..." It was already 1:00 in the afternoon, and I was meeting Kana - in the real world, no less - at 5:00. Hopefully I'd be out of this sweets store before that time so I could go change. I mean, Kana probably wouldn't care, but... Eh, humans and their dating rituals. Might as well make the effort - she's worth it.

I entered the building and scanned the foyer before spotting a directory. Glancing over it, I tapped the name of the store Kikuoka wanted me and Kazuto to meet him. Noting the floor, I moved over to the elevator and hit the up button; the closest one was on the 4th floor, so I'd have to wait for it to get down. Tapping my foot absently, I swayed from side to side without really noticing what I was doing before turning slightly to my left and scanning the foyer behind me. It was definitely an upscale location, with polished wood floors, comfortable-looking couches, and neat little vases of flowers scattered here and there breaking the brown and cream color motif. I felt my nose twitch as I registered the scent of the flowers and rubbed at it, adjusting my glasses automatically before turning back to face the elevator.

I felt a presence as people stepped up behind me, and I glanced at them - two people, both older ladies. They seemed to be well-dressed, but I could feel their eyes on me. Probably looking at me and wondering why I was here, dressed in regular street clothes. I'll admit, my jacket wasn't very fancy, just a black coat with red lines making a haphazard pattern along the fabric, and my pants were cargo pants, but it's not like I had to be all fancy just to meet with the agent. The elevator bell rang and the doors opened; I stood aside in the event that anyone was inside, but since it was clear I stepped in and hit the button for the 6th floor. As I moved to the back, the ladies entered as well, chattering away about one lady's son and his girlfriend; I grimaced and sighed through my teeth, growling slightly. Couldn't I just have a quiet elevator ride in peace? I hated cramped spaces to begin with anyway, and having people there just made it worse. I could fix it, though, and my mind helpfully provided me with a good method how - slam a fist into the one on the left's cheek and take advantage of the surprise to break the other's nose with a backhand, then crush the windpipe and -

I froze and crushed down the bloodlust again; I forced the viper back into slumber, pulling out my earbuds from a pocket and putting them in my ears before turning up the music. The music scattered my thoughts, keeping me from listening to the serpent's voice telling me to kill, maim, and destroy. By scattering my thoughts I couldn't focus on the bloodlust and it drifted away, falling back to slumber; the shield that pulsed with my heartbeat reformed with the extra shell of the music to support it. Sword Art Online had broken me in ways I was still discovering, and I was fighting a constant battle to keep what was left of my sanity intact - or at least, fake it well enough that the rest of the world had no idea. Ever since I had taken Yui's advice and stopped actively trying to repress my emotions, the rage spikes had been consuming me more and more frequently. Spending time with Kana helped immensely, but I was still damaged goods. Oh, a few people knew about that - Kana, of course, knew everything, and Kazuto and Asuna knew how shattered I really was, and since I was pretty open with them I had a feeling the rest of our little friend circle had some sort of clue. But to everyone else, I was just another poor kid trapped in a nightmare by a madman - to everyone else, I was just some poor damaged young child, my development warped by two years spent in a death game. They didn't know - couldn't possibly know - that I had been cracked before that, my psyche already ten kinds of screwed up.

Ugh, I hate it when I lose control because then I always get so mopey and overdramatic for a bit afterwards. Shaking my head to break the thoughts – Kana taught me well – I glanced at the elevator's display - we were almost at the 6th floor. Since the women didn't hit a button either, they were going to the same place I was. Strange how things work out, isn't it.

The elevator came to a stop and I rode the brief feeling of weightlessness, rising up on the balls of my feet and then settling my weight in one fluid motion. My martial arts training had been for more practical reasons than riding elevators, but hey, it was a side benefit. Not complaining. The women stepped out and I followed them, turning down the music slightly and looking around. Soft lighting offsetting the sunlight that still managed to filter through the white curtains, a nice wood paneling on the walls... Yep, this place was classy. Wonder how much it made in a year, and how much of that was spent on training their employees how to be snooty without actually ever seeming to look down on you. It was a very impressive skill to have as I observed the host take the women's names and verify that they had a reservation before calling a waiter over to take them to their table. The place was definitely high-class, and I felt a little like the ugly duckling in my blood-red coat among the swans dressed in their finest white plumage. Eh, fuck them. They can take their expensive jewelry and dresses and suits and shove them up next to that stick up their collective -

"Can I help you, sir?"

\- asses. I nodded and stepped up to the desk. "I'm here to meet someone for a business meeting," I told the man, giving him a level stare as his practiced eyes scanned over my body in a heartbeat. With just that, he was probably able to tell how much money I had on me - I assumed my clothes and manner of bearing told him I was probably middle class, with a small allowance that could afford to eat here if I saved up. "A Kikuoka, I believe."

The host nodded and scanned a list before tapping a few keys on his keyboard and examining his computer screen. "Yes, the gentleman is in the back left corner. Please, go have a seat and someone will be with you to take your order shortly."

I followed his advice, picking my way through the tables and making my way to the corner. It was easy enough to move in, with plenty of space between tables - it gave the place a feeling of being airy, almost, kinda like the feeling of a café outside or something. Or maybe I was just reading too much into it and the space between tables was to ensure that the waiters or waitresses didn't drop their burdens. Either or. I spotted Kikuoka as he studied the menu, and slipped into a seat with my back to the window. I would have preferred Kikuoka's seat, actually, since he was more or less in the corner, but this was the next best thing. At least this way I could keep an eye on everything that happened around me, which was all I wanted anyway. The host stood behind the chair and I stood up briefly, shifting forward as he moved the chair closer to the table.

He handed me a menu and I nodded. "Thank you." He bowed in response and went back to his desk, waiting for the next person to arrive. "Well, Kikuoka?" I asked calmly as I scanned the menu. Everything here was expensive, and I tried to remember exactly how much money I had on me. "What did you want to talk about?"

"Hello, Nick," Kikuoka said with a smile. "C'mon, let's talk about business later. Order whatever you want - it's on me."

"I don't like sweets," I murmured. "And it's too cold for ice cream." I placed the menu in front of me with a sigh. "And I'm assuming I won't get an answer to my question until Kazuto arrives, yes?" Kikuoka just smiled. When a waiter stood by the table, I simply asked for a glass of water. "You couldn't have us meet somewhere that serves hot food, could you," I grumbled. "No, of course not."

Kikuoka laughed, sipping at a cup of tea in front of him. "I'm glad you don't feel awkward around me," he said. "Every time I speak with Kazuto he's so formal."

"You don't deserve formality," I told him bluntly.

I would have said more, but the elevator across the room let out a soft ding and my attention snapped to it; a teenage boy in black stepped out and I felt some muscles relax. Kazuto was my friend, and I couldn't even conceive of being threatened by him. He spoke with the host briefly before Kikuoka shouted, "Hey! Kirito!" and started to wave, laughing. I just sighed and hid my face in my hand, telling myself that killing Kikuoka in front of all these witnesses was a very bad idea. Besides, he _was_ useful every now and then. But more so the witnesses, because there was no way I could manage to get them all.

Obviously looking embarrassed and somewhat defensive, Kazuto sank into the chair opposite Kikuoka, to my left. "Hey, Nick," he muttered.

"Yo."

"Go ahead," Kikuoka said. "Order anything you want. It's on me."

Kazuto glared at him slightly. "Thank you, sir," he said. "That's really kind of you." I felt my lips twitch slightly - if he could sound any less enthusiastic I'd be very surprised.

Kikuoka chuckled. "Come on, you don't have to be so formal with me. Relax, and talk to me like you would in ALO."

"Okay..." Kazuto picked up the menu in front of him and started reading through the contents. "If you say so, then... I guess so..." A second later, his eyes widened and he made a sound of confusion. I chuckled slightly and rested my chin on my palm, staring off into the distance. The waiter came back for Kazuto's order, and he said, "I'd like the parfait au chocolat." I winced at his horrible, horrible mangling of the words - my mother had family in France, either her mother or grandmother or something like that, and had insisted I learn basic pronunciation. It came in handy exactly never, but it did make things a little awkward when I listened to Kazuto try so hard. "The framboise mille-feuille... and a hazelnut latte." The last bit of his order came out in a rush as Kazuto found himself on familiar ground again and I chuckled. I wasn't sure what the framboise whatever he ordered was, but I recognized the first and last item.

As the waiter walked away and Kazuto sighed with relief, Kikuoka leaned forward, resting his chin on his laced fingers. "Sorry to make you come out all this way, Kirito, Rythin," he said.

"If you're that sorry about it, why'd you ask us to come to Ginza?" Kazuto muttered, placing his menu in front of him. "And would you mind not calling me by that name in public?"

Kikuoka glanced at me and I shrugged. "I'd prefer Nick in this world, please." He'd used our real names earlier, so maybe he was just trying to irritate Kazuto.

"What's with all the attitude?" Kikuoka asked. "And here I thought we were all buds. I was the first to visit you in the hospital, Kazuto, remember?" Kazuto glared at him, but didn't refute his statement. It wasn't true in my case, since the Dual Blades Swordsman was obviously more important than me, but Kikuoka was one of my first visitors. Well, third, technically, if my parents counted. Still, I hadn't had a visitor that I actually cared about - Kazuto was still too weak to travel, and Kana didn't even know I was alive until I sent her that message. And, of course, Asuna was still trapped by Sugou.

I leaned back and stretched my legs out under the table, sitting comfortably. "So why exactly did you call us here, anyway?" I asked him. "I'm sure Kazuto already told you everything about Aincrad over the summer."

"Thanks for that, by the way," Kazuto grumbled to me. "Slipping out to go with the girls and leaving me to deal with him by myself."

"Don't mention it."

Kikuoka closed his menu with a clap, startling both of us. "Actually, I wanted to talk to you about something else." He rummaged in the briefcase that was sitting against his chair before pulling out a tablet and handing it to Kazuto. "Have a look at that."

Kazuto tapped the tablet and placed it on the table, angling it so that I could see as well. "Who's he?" he asked.

"This won't be pleasant," Kikuoka said, taking back the tablet. "So last month, on November the fourteenth, a landlord of an apartment complex in Tokyo noticed a foul odor while cleaning." I frowned, giving him my attention. "It was coming from one of the units. So he disabled the lock and discovered this man, dead."

I chuckled grimly, picturing the scene. "That's gotta be a shocker. Check in on one of your tenants and they've died?"

"His name was Tamotsu Shigemura, and he was 26. He'd been dead for five days." I wrinkled my nose as I imagined the odor. Kikuoka slid the image on the tablet, showing us what appeared to be a picture of the man's apartment - it was filthy, with plastic bags and dirty dishes everywhere. Bachelors. How do people live like that? I couldn't stand the mess, if only because it would be a pain to pick my way around the floor. "His place was a mess, but no signs of burglary. He had something interesting on his head, though..."

Kazuto tensed and his eyes narrowed. "An AmuSphere?"

"Yeah..." Kikuoka sighed, and I closed my eyes and swore softly under my breath. The agent slid to the next picture, an image of the man's head. The AmuSphere covered his eyes, but I could still see them, wide and staring. He had some stubble on his chin and cheeks, like he hadn't shaved for several days. "It was ruled an unnatural death, so they did an autopsy. The cause of death was found to be acute heart failure." So not brain damage?

"Wait," Kazuto said slowly, "heart failure? You mean his heart stopped? Did they find out why?"

"No, they didn't," Kikuoka told him.

Kazuto stared at him, eyes distant, before snapping back to reality when the waiter arrived with his order. "Here you are, sir," he said, handing Kazuto what appeared to be a chocolat parfait, a coffee, and a slice of cake with a raspberry on top. So that's what the framboise mille-feuille was.

He then handed me a glass of ice water, and I nodded gratefully. "Thank you," I said politely. I may be an asshole, but there was still merit in being polite, at least in public and to people who didn't know me very well. I could get things more easily if they thought I was nice - and besides, I had worked customer service for like a summer before the whole SAO thing. I knew how shitty it was.

Kikuoka waited until the waiter left before continuing. "Unfortunately, because so much time had passed since his death," he said, "and foul play was ruled out as a cause, the autopsy wasn't very thorough." Incompetents. "We do know he'd been logged in for two days straight and hadn't eaten anything the whole time." I shook my head silently - humans could survive for about a week, maybe two without food. It would suck, and eat away at their muscles eventually leaving no means to get more food, but two days wouldn't do much more than leave him feeling weak and dizzy. Nothing that could stop the heart.

"That's not that unusual," Kazuto said. "Players do that all the time." His eyes met mine, and I realized we were both thinking about SAO - how we had been logged in for two years, not two days. "Wait, why are you telling us about this?"

"That's... a good question, actually," I said. "So, Agent? Feel like spilling?"

"He had a game installed on his AmuSphere called Gun Gale Online," Kikuoka said, the light from the window behind me catching his glasses and turning them into shining discs. "Do either of you know that one?"

I nodded with a small shrug. "Steampunk, essentially an FPS MMO. Like the name says, it's all about guns."

"It's the only MMO in Japan with professional players," Kazuto added.

Kikuoka nodded. "Well, this past October there was a tournament to decide the most powerful player in GGO."

I frowned and sighed, the breath hissing through my teeth. "Let me guess. This dead guy was the winner."

"Exactly." I grimaced again. "His character's name was XeXeeD." A revenge killing, maybe?

Kazuto absently tapped at his slice of cake with a fork. "Was he playing GGO when he died?" I noticed the small hesitation before he said the final word, but didn't say anything - SAO left scars in all of us.

"No." I glanced at the agent, one eyebrow raised in confusion. "When it happened, he was appearing on a show called MMO Stream. As XeXeeD's avatar. We know the time from the logs." Kazuto took a bite of his cake - a neat square piece - and I crossed my arms, watching the agent. "This next bit of info still needs to be confirmed... According to another player's blog, at the same time Shigemura had the heart attacks something strange happened in GGO."

My eyes narrowed. "Strange how, exactly?"

"Some players were at a bar in-game, watching the show, when one of the players stood up and started acting erratically." I snorted in disgust - couldn't people just sit down, shut up, and watch TV without shouting? Though, to be fair I wasn't exactly innocent of that either, since I liked to talk to the characters. But I only did that while alone, so whatever. "The blog states, the player was shouting stuff about judgment and power at XeXeeD's image on the TV, and then fired his gun at it." I blinked and raised an eyebrow - that was pointless in every sense of the word except maybe the bullet's point. Why would this be important? "At the time, another player in the bar happened to be recording audio." Convenient. "He uploaded it to a video site. Since the file had a Japan standard time counter embedded, we know that the shot fired at the TV and Shigemura's avatar disappearing from the show happened at about the same time." So the shot fired coincided with the death? That was either the best timing I'd ever heard of, or pre-planned. I don't like coincidences.

Kikuoka showed us the tablet, and I blinked as I realized the video had already gotten three and a half million views. Was it really that popular? "Probably just coincidence," Kazuto said, taking another bite of the cake. By this point, the cake was about halfway done.

"I happen to disagree," I murmured. "Agent? What else?"

Kikuoka chuckled. "What makes you think there's more?"

I rolled my eyes. "Because if it was just the one death you probably wouldn't be asking us about it. Now hurry it up, I have a date later."

He smiled. "Well, I'd rather not be the cause for keeping a lady waiting, so..." He tapped at his tablet. "There was another death, though."

I inhaled sharply, and Kazuto jerked back. "What?" he asked incredulously.

"This one happened on November 28th, somewhere in Saitama Prefecture. Same setup as before - the deceased was found at their apartment." He showed us pictures, and it was about the same kind of mess as the first guy's place. "A guy delivering the newspaper happened to look in the window. He saw the victim lying in bed, wearing an AmuSphere rig. Said the smell was -"

"Ahem!" My head snapped to the source of the sound - it was one of the ladies that had been in the elevator with me. Several customers were glaring at us, probably because we were discussing the smell of a rotting corpse in a restaurant.

I glanced at Kikuoka. "Let's put aside the sickly-sweet smell of rotting, decaying flesh and rotten food. And we probably shouldn't mention the stench of urine and feces, since corpses often evacuate their bowels on death," I said, slightly louder than usual, and was rewarded by the women standing up in disgust and leaving. I grinned viciously and felt a small stirring of satisfaction as I chuckled. Almost as good as physical attacks.

Kikuoka coughed. "Anyway, heart failure was the cause of death." My eyes narrowed – a second one, also wearing an AmuSphere. "The victim was also a top-ranking GGO player. His character's name was... Usujio Tarako?" He sounded confused for some reason, but plowed past it. I didn't care - by this point, seeing somebody name themselves after food was just another drop in the bucket of stupid VR names. "Well, he was playing when he died." He showed us the images - the deceased had a bandana and war paint on in one picture, and I assumed it was just an image of him in combat. The second picture was a structure of some sort, almost like a lighthouse. It reminded me of the town at the base of the World Tree in ALO. "It happened in the central plaza on Glocken. He was in the middle of his squad... I guess that's the same as a guild." If what I had heard of the game was correct, party would probably be closer to the mark, but close enough that the comparison made sense. "A strange player went up to him and shot him, point blank."

"Do you know if it was the same guy that shot XeXeeD?" Kazuto asked, sipping at his coffee.

"Most likely. He said some stuff about judgment and power, and then identified himself by the same character name."

Kazuto frowned. "What name?"

Kikuoka lowered the tablet and looked at both of us seriously. "Death Gun."

"Death...Gun..." I murmured.

Clouds in the sky shifted, and the sun beamed through the thin white curtains, illuminating the table while simultaneously making the shadowed corners darker. There was a shift in the atmosphere - like everything up to this point had just been three people catching up over a meal, and now things were getting serious. Kazuto set his cup back on its plate and frowned. "Are you absolutely sure both victims died of heart failure?" I recognized the change in his voice as the voice he used when we needed to fight and win, and I shifted posture slightly, automatically reacting to that tone and coming alert.

"What do you mean?"

I leaned forward. "Is it possible they died of something else? Something else related to, say, brain damage?" Kazuto and I exchanged a quick glance - the AmuSphere was supposed to be designed to avoid being able to damage the brain with its microwave scan, but if something had been tampered with...

Kikuoka shifted, and the light played across his glasses. "I was wondering about that, too," he said with a small smile. "So I asked the coroner if there was any trace of damage to either of their brains, and he said they were both fine." My lips were pulled back, baring my eyeteeth, and I was a half-step from growling; Kazuto wasn't doing so well either. "Besides, the NerveGear rig used high-output microwaves, powerful enough to fry the signal elements and destroy the brain. On the other hand, the AmuSphere was designed so that it couldn't emit electromagnetic waves that powerful. At least, that's what the developers claimed."

"No," I said slowly, "there would be so much oversight on the development of the AmuSphere that they couldn't get away with that. They'd need to make sure it was safe."

"Sounds like you guys have done your homework," Kazuto told Kikuoka. "But even so, your story's built around coincidence and rumors."

Kikuoka sat back and the light from his glasses hid his eyes again. "True, it could be a coincidence or even a hoax. I'm not sold either way. For now, and this is hypothetical, mind you, do you think it's even remotely possible to stop a player's heart in the real world with virtual bullets from a virtual gun?" It's happening again. Again and again and again only this time it's a gun not a sword.

How remarkably odd; it felt like I was swaying, but I was sitting perfectly still - no, wait, it's my vision that's acting strange. Like I'm seeing myself sitting at the table and seeing from my eyes at the same time. I closed my eyes, forcing myself to come back under control. "No, I don't think so," I heard Kazuto say, and I opened my eyes to see him looking just as shaken as me. "But, hypothetically? Let's say this Death Gun did send some sort of killer signal to XeXeeD and that Taruko guy's AmuSpheres. What would it be?" He brought his hand to his chin and thought. "Maybe a sight or sound... a taste, a smell, a touch? Or maybe some other sensation..."

"Terror." I heard myself say, and realized both Kikuoka and Kazuto turned to look at me. "If they were weak, and they suddenly received a massive emotional shock that shook them to their very core, it's possible their hearts could stop - they'd literally die of fright." Kikuoka sat back and rested his head in one hand before chuckling. Both Kazuto and I looked at him, confused, before I had a sudden flash of insight. "But there's no need for us to say anything, is there," I growled. "Since you and your team have already come up with these ideas on your own."

"Oh, I get it!" Kazuto snarled. "You and your guys can't figure it out, so you invite us to coffee to pick our brains!"

Kikuoka leaned back and waved his hands in the air in front of him. "No, what are you talking about? I-I'd never do something like that to you, honest! I like talking to you two, and just wanted your opinion... Honest..."

Kazuto sat back with a sigh before standing up. "We're done. You want my opinion, here it is - you can't stop a player's heart in the real world by actions in-game. Shots fired and the heart attacks are coincidences." Coincidences? I'm not so sure... Something seems off.

He started to step away from the table, and Kikuoka said, "Wait! Hold on! You can order something else, just sit down and hang out for a bit!" Kazuto turned to look at him over his shoulder, uncertain. "Please. I can't tell you how relieved I am to put it into words." Kikuoka folded his hands in front of him. "Fact is, I'm of the same opinion as you. I don't believe the deaths were caused by in-game gunshots either. And now that we've talked, I want to ask you officially..."

He leaned forward and gave both of us a smile. "Would you log in to Gun Gale Online and make contact with the player calling himself Death Gun?"

"And once we do find the guy, then what?" I challenged him. "Get ourselves killed by a heart attack, just like the other two?"

"You want us to get shot, is that it?" Kazuto spat.

Kikuoka rubbed the back of his head, giving us a shameless grin. "Woah now, hang on -"

"Well screw that, I don't wanna get killed!" Kazuto shouted, whirling to leave.

With a clatter of cutlery and dishware, the agent moved faster than I expected; in a heartbeat, he was on his knees, grabbing the back of Kazuto's coat. "That's not possible! We just agreed it wasn't, didn't we?" Kazuto tugged, trying to get free. "Besides, this Death Gun guy is only going after specific targets. They have to meet his criteria!" Kazuto turned at the last word, ceasing his struggles.

I looked around, uneasy with the number of eyes on us - it seemed like the entire restaurant was staring at the commotion in the corner. "Can you please stop?" I snapped at Kikuoka. "Kazuto, sit down, please, we're making a scene. I don't like being stared at." Kazuto sat down, and I nodded at him while Kikuoka returned to his seat. "Thank you. Now, Agent, you were saying something about criteria?" The waiter passed by again, and Kazuto ordered another desert - this time, some sort of strawberry cake. I wasn't listening to the name. "And you didn't think this was important before? Something that, I don't know, might be useful to know?" Idiot. I hate dealing with him sometimes.

"Okay, here's the deal," Kikuoka said. "XeXeeD and Usujio Tarako weren't just any old players, they were top-ranked. So it's safe to assume he's not interested in newbies. If you, Kazuto, were strong enough to beat Kayaba at his own game -"

"That's different!" Kazuto snapped. "Look, I don't know what you've heard, but GGO's no walk in the park. It's filled with pro gamers!"

"Hold the phone!" Kikuoka said, pointing at Kazuto. "You said pro gamer. What does that mean, 'pro'?"

"Professional," I said calmly, my temper under control again. "Literally. From what I've heard, GGO allows for conversion between game currency and real-world currency."

"What?" Kikuoka asked, seemingly confused. I knew him too well, though - he wasn't surprised for a second. He wasn't even a desk jockey, really, but an agent of some other organization on loan to the Ministry of Defense.

"Do well enough in game, you've paid your monthly subscription. Do even better, you get a nice fat paycheck in the mail. The top-ranked players make a living off of playing GGO and winning tournaments," I said. "I believe the current salary, as it were, for pros is around 200, 300 thousand a month."

"It's an awesome gig," Kazuto said, sighing. "That's why the high-level guys in GGO are so hardcore. They pour more time and passion into it than players from other MMOs." Well, it was true - I know that if I was getting paid real money for Trinity's contracting, I'd be playing ALO a lot more and actively searching for jobs rather than just waiting for people to come to me. "Someone like me or Nick can't just log in and match players like that. You should find someone else."

"Woah, hold it, hold it!" Kikuoka exclaimed, holding his hands out like that would literally stop Kazuto. "Who else am I gonna find, you two are it! I need your help in this investigation, and if taking these pros on is that big a deal, I can pay you... this much." He held up three fingers, and Kazuto gulped.

Slowly, I grinned. It wasn't a nice grin. "So this is a contracting?" I asked calmly. He nodded. I chuckled. "Well, why didn't you say so in the first place? If this were Trinity, I'd be having a bidding war with Death Gun. But, since I probably can't talk to him... 350 thousand each plus expenses for both of us and you have yourself a deal." I could probably have gotten more out of him - he had just said we were his only option - but it wasn't a good idea to ask for too much out of him. Besides, we were getting a month's worth of a GGO player's salary for a few days of game time. Seems like a good gig. Kikuoka winced, but agreed.

Still, Kazuto tried to play it cool. "Ah, I don't get why you're so hung up on this. You find horror stories like this all the time online."

I shook my head. "It's the hardware, Kazuto, not the software." His eyes widened as he put two and two together, and I nodded. "Yeah. If people think the AmuSphere is unsafe, there goes the entire MMO market. Everything's getting shut down. And this time, there's not going to be a Seed to regrow it."

"The effect of FullDive technology on the real world is the hottest technology today," Kikuoka said slowly. "Literally everyone's researching it." Hopefully not literally. "People are going to try to use these deaths to regulate the technology. We want to know the facts before that happens. We want to be sure." He leaned forward and rested his chin on his laced fingers. "That's why we're interested."

"You guys could go directly to the admins about it," Kazuto said, and I snorted; because that worked so well the last two times you and I got involved with something like this, buddy.

"Right. But Zaskar, the company that developed and hosts GGO, is in the US. Their address, phone number, and email... none of it's been made public, so we can't contact them. Ever since the Seed was released, all kinds of shady VR worlds have popped up."

"Eheh..." Kazuto and I exchanged an almost guilty glance - well, his was guilty. Mine wasn't – couldn't be, after all.

"Yeah..."

"Maybe they're legit, maybe they're not. Either way, if we want to find anything out we've gotta do it from the inside," Kikuoka said. "We have to try contacting them from in the game. I'm not asking you to get shot. We'll take whatever safety precautions we have to. Just evaluate the situation and report back. So will you help us or what?"

"So, a recon job?" I asked. "Eh. I'm better with tactical jobs and assassinations, but I guess I can do this. The price is right, after all." Mercenary, maybe. Profitable, definitely.

Kazuto looked down, staring at his plate; I had a feeling he was thinking about the deaths in Aincrad, how this stupid Death Gun was bringing back the memories that had just started to fade away. Eventually, he looked up at Kikuoka, and I smiled at the steel in his eyes. "I'm in."

"Excellent." Kikuoka sat back, relieved. "I'm glad to hear you two say that. So..." He smiled and reached into his briefcase again, producing two small disks. My eyes narrowed - had he expected us to agree the entire time? Bastard played us like a fiddle. "These disks will install Gun Gale Online to your AmuSpheres... Ah, Nick, you have one, right?" I nodded, and he continued on. "It should also pay the first connection fee for you. You'll have to pay the 3000 yen yourself from that point on if you want to keep playing, but... Hopefully this will be wrapped up before we have to renegotiate."

Sullenly, I took the disk - I hated being outplayed. "Right," I grumbled. "We'll get on that eventually." As Kazuto took his own disk, I stood up, draining my glass of water. "Thank you for the time, Kikuoka. I hope you are ready to pay up when we're done."

Outside the building, I chuckled as I realized Kazuto had parked his motorcycle right next to mine. "I still get surprised when I see this thing," Kazuto told me absently while staring at my bike. "I mean, you didn't strike me as the type to ride one."

I shrugged. "Needed a way to get around. Easier than a car." I started to unlock my helmet, and turned to Kazuto. "Hey, Kazuto?"

"Hm?"

"What are you going to tell Asuna?"

He froze and then sighed slowly, leaning his weight against his bike. "I don't know. I mean, we have to do this, don't we?"

"You're thinking about the deaths."

"Yeah..." He ran his fingers through his hair, looking surprisingly lost. It wasn't often that I saw him at a loss for what to do. "We just aren't allowed to forget, are we..."

"We have to tell them, though," I said. "At least Asuna and Kana. The others might not care as much, but we'll be crucified if we transfer over without telling them."

Kazuto just sighed. "Maybe I'll figure out how to tell her later today." He grinned at me. "We're going to the Imperial Gardens." I gave him a thumbs up and he chuckled.

"I'm sure she'll understand. Though, I wouldn't tell her the exact reason we're switching, hm? She might get a bit stressed if she knows we're about to go try to take down a serial killer in the making." Only two so far, but if one more body shows up then it's a serial killer.

"Makes sense." Kazuto gave me a wave before putting his helmet on and turning the key in his bike's ignition - the engine roared to life, purring like a kitten. A large, metal kitten with two wheels. Maybe a lion cub? What not-bird animal only has two legs, anyway? The only ones I know about are humans, some gorillas, and whatever bipedal monstrosities existed in Australia. And Godzilla, but he doesn't count.

* * *

After dropping the disk off at home and changing to something just a bit more formal - I changed from sneakers to boots, because that's totally more formal, me - I walked to the place where I was supposed to meet my girlfriend. She wasn't where we had set the meeting place, but then again I was fifteen minutes early - it was only 4:45. That was fine; I just sat down at the bench by the fountain and turned my music up. It gave me time to think about the situation I had found myself in.

So people were getting killed, huh? And it was by a guy in-game shooting them with a gun. But it wasn't like they had any sort of marks on their body or damage to anything, apparently - just the acute heart failure. If I didn't know better, I'd assume they were just two people that died from a heart attack. But the whole timing thing with Death Gun made it way too much of a coincidence. I sent Kikuoka a quick message asking him to check for any history of heart disease in the family of each of the deceased - I doubted it would bring up anything special, and I'd assume they'd already thought of that, but it was still worth a shot. I honestly didn't expect them to find anything, though. Something just struck me as off - Kazuto might be determined to see it as a coincidence, but some sixth sense was telling me something was wrong. It was like Future Step was bleeding to other aspects of my life.

Suddenly, a face with curly brown hair and brown eyes filled my vision, and I smiled. First thing to do, turn off the music. "Kana, so good to see you." I was struck by a sudden urge and wrapped her in a hug, enjoying how comforting she felt.

"Ack! Crushing, crushing!" I laughed and let go, looking at my laughing girlfriend. "What was that for?"

I shrugged. "Don't really know. Just felt like it, I guess."

Kana smiled. "Well, did I make you wait long?"

"Nah, I've only been here for fifteen minutes." I scanned my girlfriend; she was wearing what appeared to be a regular street outfit. I didn't really have a good eye for fashion, so I couldn't say whether or not she looked good in it. "You look very beautiful," I said regardless.

Kana giggled and spun around before flicking my forehead lightly. "Liar. You can't tell a difference, can you?"

"I know you're beautiful despite that," I told her. "Just because I don't have a concept of physical beauty doesn't mean you aren't pretty."

"Flatterer."

"So where are we going?" I asked her, stretching and twisting to loosen my muscles. I jerked slightly when my spine popped, but the relief was worth the instant of discomfort. "I did promise you dinner, but that's not for an hour or two."

"I don't know," Kana said absently. "Let's just walk for a bit." Saying that, she grabbed my right hand in her left and started dragging me along, just going off in a direction. "We'll figure out something to do along the way."

I followed her with a fond smile on my face, catching up to her and walking alongside the girl, matching her strides. "So are we just going to wander around for an hour or two, or did you want to check anything out?"

"Hm..." Kana hummed in thought and looked at me finally. "What do you think Asuna and Kazuto are talking about, right now?"

Surprised by the non-sequitur, I stumbled over my words for a few seconds. "Ah... I don't know, really." I gave the question some thought, and finally said, "Knowing those two, something about the real world and the game world. Probably a question about the difference between the two."

"And Kazuto would say something silly like 'the amount of data', right?" Kana laughed. "So... What do you think?"

"Hm?"

"What's the difference?"

I hummed in thought. "Well, I'd have to say that to me there is no difference, really, not now. I mean, one's a body of flesh and blood while the other's a body of data, but... it's still my brain, my mind controlling my actions." I shrugged. "Does it make a difference whether my mind is controlling my real body or the one made by data?"

Kana leaned her head against my shoulder as we walked, and I shifted my gait slightly to match her footsteps exactly in order to keep her comfortable. "Strange way of looking at it. I think there's a difference, but I don't think it's in the amount of data. I think it's in what we can learn."

"How so?"

"Well, let's take the game world first. Sure, there's information that we don't know yet, but it's a finite set. There's an end to the new information we can learn about the game, even with how advanced Cardinal is. Everything in the virtual world has an algorithm to it that explains exactly why it is what it is. When we know that, we know what it's going to be." Kana sighed. "But the real world... There's no upper limit on what we can learn here. Everything is mutable and the future isn't set in stone."

I grinned. "Trust the best info broker in the game to think of things that way, eh?" Ruffling her hair to elicit a squeak from the girl, I poked at her cheek. "It makes sense, though. I get it."

"Yeah, yeah." Suddenly, Kana examined a store we were passing by, a bookstore that the two of us frequented. "Hey, I think they got some new books in. Should we check?"

"Sure, why not."

The bell above the door rang as the two of us entered; I checked to see who was minding the store today, and smiled and waved when I recognized the owner. "Oh, hello, Nick, Kana," the woman said. "Nice to see you today. Are you two out on a date?"

"Yep!" Kana said, giving her a wave. "What's new?"

"Nothing you're interested in, Nick," the owner told me, "but I think you'll like a few books, Kana." Somehow, the owner not only knew every book she had in the store, but knew where they were in the shelves and had read most of them. It was like she had a photographic memory for books. With that, she was able to recommend books that she had a feeling the two of us would like.

Since there was nothing new for me, I wandered around, looking for the other attraction of the bookstore. Not finding my goal, I looked up and smiled. "Hello there, kitty." The owner had renovated the inside slightly, installing ramps up along the walls that led to the rafters up above, as well as adding connecting segments of wood between each bookshelf. The overall look of the place was a bit eclectic, but it made it easier for the cats to get around – the owner took in strays and helped find homes, so there were usually two or three felines running around. The cat – a Siamese, one that I'd met before – meowed and just jumped from the top of the bookshelf; moving swiftly, I crouched, letting the cat land lightly on my back. I felt the weight of the cat, followed by it kneading my back while purring. "Don't get too comfortable, kitty, I do have to go get dinner with my girlfriend."

The weight disappeared, and I stood up to see Kana cuddling the cat. "Hey now, I'm the only one allowed to get close to him like that," she scolded the feline. "He's mine."

"No need to get catty," I told her, scratching at the cat's head and smiling at Kana. "I like you more than I like the cat anyway." I glanced at her hand to see a bag of books there. "Get everything you wanted?"

"Yep. Ready to go?"

I gave the cat one last pet and nodded. "Yeah, we should probably get going. The reservation was for 6:30, so we've got about a half hour to get there."

Despite the rush, Kana complained about having to carry the books and made me hold the bag for her. I didn't mind, of course, so both of my hands were busy. It did make me a little uneasy, not having a free hand, but I could put up with it; after all, if something happened I could always use my feet, and Kana would know to take the bag back. Fortunately, we made it in time, even though I was feeling on edge the whole time. I'm pretty sure Kana realized that, because she took point in getting our table at the restaurant. Once we were seated, though, and I was back on somewhat familiar ground, I came back to life slightly.

About halfway through our meal, Kana grinned at me. "So, Nick, what do you need to tell me?"

I glanced at her, busy chewing a bite. "Mm?"

"You've been meaning to tell me something ever since we met up," she said. "I just don't know what it is. So c'mon, spill."

Setting my silverware across my plate, I sighed and laced my fingers, staring past the woman I loved into the distance. "I've been hired for a recon job," I told her. "But it requires I transfer to a different game."

Kana frowned, giving me her full attention. "Are you sure?" I nodded slowly, still not looking at her, and she pursed her lips. "Who's the client?"

"Agent Kikuoka."

"Crap..." Kana sat back and stared at the ceiling, thinking. "And you already agreed to it?"

"I had no choice, really. It was either I agreed or I let Kazuto go alone."

"I get it," Kana said, "I really do. But that just means things are going to be a little awkward in Alfheim. I've heard the Steel Hearts were thinking of hiring Trinity for a dungeon raid, so..." The Steel Hearts was a guild that had surprised me at first - it was led by Ziria, the Imp I had fought with the first time I left Cait Sith territory. Apparently she really did remember me, and when I set up Trinity she and her guild decided to hire me for a quest at one point. Since then, they'd hired me every now and then, more to hang out than anything.

"I guess I'll take care of that before I go, then." I grinned at Kana, and she came back to Earth. "Good news is, by the way, Kikuoka's paying for dinner."

"Expenses, too?" I just grinned at her and she snickered. "Wow, he really was desperate. Think we could justify a shopping trip for supplies as expenses?"

I shrugged. "I don't know, but it's certainly worth a shot. Maybe tomorrow, if we don't have too much homework after classes."

"Recon in what game, if it's not classified?"

I smiled grimly, but I could feel a hint of humor behind it. "Gun Gale Online."

* * *

Dinner was a success despite the awkward topic brought up - it being free helped lift our spirits immensely - and Kana and I went back to my place afterwards. Parent knew Kana was coming over and had prepared the couch where I would ostensibly be sleeping. Since she knew there was no way that was happening, she had also changed the sheets on my bed and opened the window to let it air out. My mom happened to like Kana, and it made things far easier for me. Though, every now and then I got the feeling she was just glad I had found a girl in the first place.

When we got back to my room, we immediately beelined for the bed; I flopped down, followed by Kana hitting it a second later and crashing into me. I caught her in a hug, trapping her for a second until she managed to squirm out of my admittedly weak hold; laughing, she tossed me the AmuSphere that had been sitting on the desk by the bed before pulling her own rig out of her purse. I swear, those bags are bigger on the inside, like a whole separate dimension kind of big. There's no way everything she needs would fit inside that thing.

After I opened my eyes again, I was resting on the bed in the house I owned in-game. As I sat up with a stretch and yawn, Argo appeared next to me in a flash of light before she went through the same waking up routine I did. "Hey, Imp," I said with a grin.

"Hey yourself." Argo looked around aimlessly, her pale purple eyes tracking the room, before rising from the bed in a languid motion and standing in front of the mirror. "Are you going out mob-hunting today?" She tapped a few screens in her menu, and her sleeping clothes were replaced by her typical outfit, the brown cloak hiding violet leather armor.

I did the same, equipping my gloves, weapons, and Bloodwyrm Coat before checking to make sure the throwing knives were still in place. "Yeah, the others are meeting up in a field to get Liz some blacksmithing materials. I was gonna drop by, lend a hand. Unless you need me?"

Argo waved away the question. "I think I'll be fine. All I had planned for tonight was sales trolling anyway. Somebody contacted me over the forums for advice on a particular dungeon."

"Which one?"

"The dungeon right inside the edge of Salamander territory. You know, the one with the scythe traps and the falling rocks and stuff? Turns out they're tired of wiping and are just buying the locations of all the traps."

I glanced at the time and shrugged, glancing at my girlfriend while she sat at the one desk in the room, flipping through some of her notes. "I can come with, explain how exactly to avoid them if they're willing to pay extra."

Argo twitched slightly. "Nah, if the others are expecting you then I don't want to keep them waiting. Asuna would never forgive me."

"They aren't expecting me until a little bit later," I said. "They knew we were on a date. Besides, it's not like I'd be all that much help - Leafa, Liz, and Silica can handle most of the monsters by themselves, and Kirito's there to fix any problems that the rest can't handle."

Argo leaned back over her chair, staring at me upside down. "You, turn down a fight? That's new. Trying to get a little bit of distance, make the shift easier?"

"Eh. Not really." I moved over and poked her nose, making a silly little 'Boop!' noise as I did. Argo crossed her eyes at me and stuck her tongue out before sitting up straight again and focusing on her notes again. "I'd just much rather spend time with you."

"Correct answer. Full marks."

I grinned. "And in any event, I'll be spending a few days with Kirito in about a week anyway, so it's not a huge deal if I miss out on quality time with the others now."

"I could use a little help," Argo said slowly. "They've only paid for a map of the place, but who says they won't want something more?" I leaned on the back of the chair and crossed my arms around her, resting my cheek on the top of her head. She patted my hands with a free hand before scribbling something on a note. "Well, we should be going. I think they're waiting for us by Agil's shop, so if we want to be at the meeting place in time leaving now would be a good idea."

As we exited the house, standing on the balcony, I grinned and cracked my neck. "Standard race path?"

"Nn," Argo agreed, summoning her wings and lifting herself off of the balcony, perching on the railing. For my part, I just sat on the railing, my back to the open air. "Ready?"

"Coin flip... now." I pulled out a small coin - the smallest denomination of Yrd, just 1 Yrd - and flipped it in the air. As it spun in the air, I leaned back with my eyes closed, letting myself fall.

The coin rang out as it struck the ground, and my eyes snapped open; summoning my wings, I pushed off of the wall behind me and launched towards the nearest rooftop. Above me, Argo soared into the air, following her pre-determined path in the air. I was, just by stats alone, faster than she was, so I had the slightly more involved route. As usual, I went roof-hopping, using my wings to increase speed and maneuverability, while Argo was free to more or less fly straight to Agil's shop, with one or two detours to change course.

I landed on the roof and rolled on the rough surface, getting to my feet with a surge and moving forward without losing speed. The next rooftop on the fastest path - I had done a mental map the first few times Argo and I raced, and this was the path with the objectively least distance, minimizing backtracking - was higher up, so I needed to rise on the vertical plane. Launching myself into the air, I let Acrobatics take over; I grabbed a protruding pole and swung, throwing myself forward before using the nearby wall as a launch pad to clear the roof. I knew I wouldn't have been able to reach the pole without my wings, let alone make the jump requiring split-second timing - despite that, I kept moving without hesitating.

As I raced forward, I glanced over to see Argo soaring, only a little bit ahead of me - she could fly without the flight controller, but she couldn't hit speeds like Leafa or I could manage. That alone let me keep up with her while running. Suddenly, my instincts warned me of danger, and I reacted without thinking - jumping and twisting in midair, I watched as several flying players passed under me, one wrenching out of the way to avoid where I would have been and crashing into a chimney. I just hit the ground, coming out of the flip, and kept moving without calling out an apology. It wasn't my fault he hit the roof, after all.

Thirty seconds later I leaped, flipping in midair, and landed on the roof of Agil's shop with a light thump; with a grunt, I crouched and rolled backwards, catching myself on the eaves of the store with my hands before dropping lightly to the ground. I looked inside the window, giving Agil a wave; he held up a sign that read 5.5 and I shrugged. It wasn't my best dismount, and I knew it.

A second or two later, Argo landed next to me, her purple wings folding behind her back. "Aw, and I thought I'd beat you when those players almost ran into you," she said.

"Better luck next time, Miss Rat." I'd specialized in speed and acrobatics in Aincrad, whereas my lady love had taken skills that let her sneak around unnoticed. She was a magnificent eavesdropper, but it did mean I was faster than her.

When the group of players arrived ten minutes later, Argo and I were calmly sitting, discussing the homework that we had been assigned the previous day - it was the weekend, so there was plenty of it. "...and I'm just saying, you should pull out the constant first because otherwise the differential gets -" Argo broke off what she was saying, picking up the scattered notes we had scribbled down. "Hey, Ry, look who it is. Customers!"

I glanced at them, taking in their appearance - it looked to be a party from a guild, since there were plenty of different races in the mix of eight players. Then again, ever since the World Tree quest had turned out to be a hoax, players from other races were mingling with each other more than before. It was entirely possible... nah, not likely. People were still pretty segregated, at least for the most part. I nodded to the players politely before pulling out a book from my inventory and sitting back to read. If they didn't buy the information, I had no reason to talk to them.

About twenty or so pages in - I read fast, but they were long pages - Argo tapped me on the shoulder. I glanced up, making a small sound of confusion, and she said, "Ry, they're asking for how to dodge the traps."

Sighing slightly and putting the book to the side, I looked around at the players sitting on the other side of the table. "How much? All of it, or just the path to the end?"

"Quickest path, with detours for the marked treasures."

I frowned. "Map, please." Argo handed me the map of the dungeon, and I spread it out over the table. After scanning it for a second, tracing the brown line inked in that marked the path they should take as well as the red paths that led to treasure, I nodded. I tapped the first trap, a simple pit trap that extended a long distance - normally, with our wings it wouldn't be a problem, but since the dungeon was underground, only Imps could fly over. "Without an Imp in the party, you'll need to hit the disarm trigger with a ranged attack. Throwing knives, bow, or any single-target spells that don't explode will work."

"What about wall -"

I glared at the Sylph that had spoken, slightly irritated at being interrupted. "A good idea, but it's longer than the wall-run distance." Theoretically, a skilled player could jump off of the one wall and barely manage to land on the other one, but it was risky – and I'd never pulled it off myself, keeping it in the realm of purely theoretical. He nodded and leaned back, staring at the map. I tapped the next trap along the path - this one was on a red line, surrounding a treasure chest mark. "This one is a pressure plate trap..."

By the time I had finished explaining the best ways to disarm or dodge each trap - the swinging pendulums across a bridge took some time to explain, but it was more them just not understanding the concept of timing - it was about time for me to meet up with the rest of the group. As the party packed up the materials we had provided for them, I fidgeted slightly and Argo definitely noticed. "Time for you to leave?"

I nodded and leaned over, bumping my forehead against hers. "Yeah. See you later, Rat."

"Get out of here, Ry," she said with a smile. "I can manage without you for a while." Spreading my golden wings, I took off with a grateful smile and twitch of my ears.

I flew east for a bit, passing past both my and Argo's house and the apartment Kirito and Asuna shared; as I left the bounds of Yggdrasil City, I felt my body tense slightly once I lost the protection of the Safe Zone. There wasn't even a mark on my HUD as I crossed the invisible line; but still, my instincts noticed the shift and reacted accordingly. After a few more minutes, I arrived at the destination we had set for meeting. Our targets were monsters in a low-level field dungeon, so we needed to meet up just outside of it; as I approached the hill in front of the dungeon containing these strange-shaped platforms, I could see my friends and the rest of the party waiting patiently, though at that distance I couldn't see them very well. From the pink hair alone, I could identify Lisbeth; the smaller one beside her was probably Silica, and the tall blonde Leafa. "Looks like Klein isn't here," I murmured, the wind throwing my words away.

As I closed in on them, I folded my wings a few feet above the ground without slowing down first; I plunged toward the ground, but rolled the second I hit the dirt and transferred the momentum to a leap that carried me straight into Leafa. She hit the ground, and when the dust cleared I was perched on top of her, grinning madly. "Get...off..." Leafa grunted.

"And the most wonderful thing about Rythins is I'm the only one!" I sang before rolling off of the girl. "I'm the only one! Mraow..."

"And thank god for that," Lisbeth remarked.

I grinned at her from my seat on the ground. "What, you don't like classic children's literature?" I was missing the stripes and the fur on my cat ears and tail was brown, but I think my bouncing ability was pretty close.

"No, I just don't like you."

Stretching, I took Leafa's extended hand and she helped me to my feet. "Is that anything to say to someone who's here to help you get materials for your work?" I asked her in a patronizing tone, deliberately trying to get a rise out of the blacksmith.

At this point, Kirito stepped forward slightly. "If you're done harassing my sister and irritating Liz, I think we should get going. I mean, we do have school tomorrow."

I opened my mouth to say something smart-assed like I always did when Asuna leaned forward and smiled at me sweetly, saying, "Rythin..." Every animal instinct in me immediately told me to get the hell out of Dodge, and I managed to get that reaction down to just whimpering slightly. After a second, I swallowed and nodded, and Asuna's smile changed to something less terrifying. "Good." Lisbeth made a whip-crack sound, and without looking I flipped her off.

When someone tapped me on the upper arm, I looked over - and then down to see Silica standing there. My fellow Cait Sith said, "Hey, Rythin? Could you help me with homework after this? I'm a little confused on some of this stuff..."

I grinned at the girl. "Sure thing."

She smiled. "Thank you!"

Hearing a soft chuckle, I turned to see Leafa standing there, arms folded underneath her, ah... assets, let's say. "It's a surprise to see you being nice for a change."

"Racial bias," I told her. "And Pina is adorable so I want to play with the dragon for a bit." Leafa just smiled and moved on, striking up a conversation with Lisbeth. The blonde seemed to be doing better recently; during the summer, she had been a little out of it, but according to Kirito she was doing just fine at home as well. Good for her; I considered Sugu a sister, part of my very small family, so I liked it when she was happy. It bugged me when there was nothing I could do to help, but at the moment it looked like I didn't need to do anything.

I slowly drifted over to Kirito and Asuna; as I stood there, arms folded, Kirito leaned over. "Did you tell Argo?" he murmured.

"I did," I replied quietly. "And you? Does Asuna know?"

Kirito inhaled, then exhaled slowly. "I'm telling her later today. Hopefully knowing a week ahead of time won't make her too mad." I nodded solemnly. Shaking his head, he stepped forward and clapped his hands, catching everyone's attention. "Is everyone ready to go?" I rolled my shoulders and cracked my neck, missing the typical cracking sound from the real world. It didn't fix anything or make my neck feel any better in game or out of game, but somehow the sound effect just made it slightly more visceral.

"So, Liz, what's our goal for today?" Asuna asked.

"Let's see..." Lisbeth opened her menu and tapped a few buttons, bringing up a list. "I think all I need is the Thick Roots one of the monsters here drops, so 50 or so of those?" She grinned. "The rest of the monsters drop useful stuff too, so it's not like we should ignore them."

Kirito turned, his longcoat flaring in the faint breeze. "Well, let's get to it, then."

"This'll be fun." I grinned and cracked my knuckles before drawing the Moonblade and spinning it a few times, the blood-colored blade staying red even through the gray filter of Future Step. "I can't wait to start killing." I might be… a _bit_ fucked up in the head.

With most of us working together – most, because about halfway through Kirito and Asuna flew up to rest on one of the mushroom shaped protrusion-thingies that rose up from the ground here and there – we slaughtered the monsters quickly enough. Since I was working on my Illusion and Fire magic skills, I was keeping back, using my spells to fight; that meant, of course, that when things inevitably turned sour I was out of magic to help, since it was the end of the run and I had been chugging the mana potions like they were – well, I would say Tic Tacs but that would be a more accurate comparison if I were taking tablets or other pills, so maybe energy drinks? Except I didn't drink those either, so… It doesn't really matter.

When things went tits-up as they always did, we were fighting the final Mutant Gerbera in the area we had chosen for grinding; the girls were close, using their melee weapons, and they had requested I stay back and provide backup support only if needed. I had no problem being lazy but reaping the rewards anyway, so I was content to sit back and relax on one of the elevated thingies. I really need to come up with a name for those, don't I? I think hill works, even though it looks like something rather large took a bite out of the base. Kinda like an apple core, in a way. Oh, hill cores! That works.

Anyway, I was relaxing on the hill core, watching as the three girls circled the Mutant Gerbera; it roared at Silica, trying to bite at her, but its teeth closed on thin air when the girl ducked and dashed forward suddenly. With a shout, she opened up a long large gash on its side with a leaping slash; as she leapt clear, she grinned triumphantly. However, two long tendrils snaked out and wrapped around her ankles, and she was hoisted into the air upside down with a scream. Leafa called out, but before she could move to rescue the Cait Sith Silica grinned. With a laugh, she summoned her wings and righted herself, grinning smugly at the monster. "I've got a new trick up my sleeve," she taunted.

As if in response, some of the roots of the monster rose up and twisted behind it with a ripping sound, weaving together and interlocking until the tangled mass formed into wings; with a roar, the monster actually lifted off of the ground. Silica blanched as she was inverted, her bangs falling down out of her face, and started flailing wildly with her dagger while using one hand to hold her skirt up. I snickered. "It does too, looks like," I called. The monster we had fought on the 47th Floor, the Garish Gerbera, had done the same thing to the girl; that time, she managed to sever the vine holding her aloft and kill it, but this time it looked like she was having a little bit of trouble. Sometimes I wonder - Silica must attract all of the tentacle monsters somehow.

"Let… Leafa, help me!" Silica shouted while fruitlessly flailing at the vines holding her.

"I'm coming!" Leafa shouted, soaring toward the airborne plant creature; with a single slice of her katana, she severed both of the vines holding Silica, setting the girl free. "Lisbeth!"

From above, Lisbeth streaked towards the Mutant Gerbera, the sun at her back; I squinted, watching the Leprechaun spin past the grasping tentacles and slam her mace into the center of the monster's head with a meaty crunch. It roared in pain before shattering apart into the polygons it had been made of. Amusingly enough, Silica had forgotten to resummons her wings after being dropped, and so she hit the ground with a thump. Liz and Leafa, on the other hand, floated down much more gently, and high-fived for successfully killing the monster. "Yay!" Leafa exclaimed.

"And, let's see what we got," Lisbeth said, her wings disappearing as she tapped at her rewards screen.

Standing up and glaring about impartially, Silica said, "Please tell me that's the last of it." Pina was clinging to the top of her head, but the dull irritation in Silica's eyes and her deadpan delivery made me snicker. I'm a child.

"Hmm…" Lisbeth brought a hand up to her chin as she hummed in thought. "I think I've pretty much got everything I need."

"You wanna keep going some more?" Leafa asked. "You're always hooking us up at your shop, so if you need some more we'd be happy to help." I would complain about being volunteered, but since it was Leafa and I needed to raise my skill with the magic, well, I couldn't really whine all that loudly. Or mean it when I did whine. One of the two.

Lisbeth turned and grinned at Leafa. "Thanks, guys. Although…" When she paused, I sat up and looked around from my perch on the hill core – I couldn't see any more of the monsters in sight, and leaving to go find some more could put us at risk of dying, meaning the entire trip would be pointless at best and actively detrimental at worst.

"Hm. We sorta picked this place clean, didn't we?" Leafa mused.

Stretching, I glanced at my mana bar – it had slowly been recovering while I was resting, and by this point I was back up to mostly full. With a jump, I landed lightly behind the girls on the stone path and moved up to them. "Are we moving on, or just hanging out here and letting them respawn?"

"Let's take a break," Leafa decided. I just shrugged; I was fine with either option.

"Okay," Silica said with a sigh. She was obviously not looking forward to dealing with more of the monsters that seemed designed solely to make sure she ended up inverted in the air, the skirt she wore in danger of falling. It would solve most of her problems if she would just wear pants while fighting, like me or Kirito or even Liz, but the young girl absolutely refused. Then the Cait Sith looked up at the nearby hill core, where we could see two players resting – one in black, and one in light blue. "They're so into each other…"

"It's not fair," Lisbeth grumbled. "Dammit."

"Now, now," Leafa said with an uneasy smile.

Lisbeth just made a rude sound. "It doesn't matter if they're at school or here, they can't keep their hands off each other!"

"You mean they're like this at school, too?"

Silica frowned slightly, staring at the two jealously. "All day every day."

"Eh…" Not even Leafa could manage to support that.

After a second, all three girls sighed at the same time, and with the same tone in their voice; exchanging a glance, they all burst into giggles at the absurdity of it all.

I summoned my wings and flew up into the sky, circling slightly; I had no real reason to stay on the ground, and I kinda enjoyed flying. Like Sugu always said, it was free in a way that just moving on the ground could never hope to match. In the sky far above me, the floating castle of Aincrad passed over us, and I blocked out the castle with the palm of my right hand. The gleaming diamonds on the knuckles of my gloves distracted me slightly, and I brought my hand to my lips, absently gnawing at the gem. It really was a shame I was going to have to deal without my equipment when transferring; normally, it would be lost when my character data was wiped from Alfheim's servers – they only kept the stat data in case the player transferred back, so the player's stats were more or less the same with only a small penalty – but I could just give everything to Argo before transferring, thereby keeping everything. I'd still take the stat hit on my non-mastered skills, but eggs, omelets, and so forth.

"You're kidding!" I heard Asuna exclaim, and I glanced over to see Kirito waving his hands, hurrying to explain. With a sigh, I leaned back and closed my eyes, trusting my instincts to keep me hovering without actually keeping an eye on my position.

"Rythin?" Asuna called out, and I froze. "Could you come here for a minute?" She was sitting by Kirito's side, and the boy was grinning at me ruefully, mouthing an apology.

Exhaling slowly, I flew over to land beside my friends. "Can I just say you're looking lovely today, Asuna?" I asked, trying my damnedest to do as much damage control as possible. "Did you do something with your hair?" Yui waved from her perch on Asuna's shoulder, and I spared a smile for the adorable little Nav Pixie.

Asuna smiled sweetly at me. "Kirito tells me that you two are going to be transferring to a different game in about a week."

I nodded slowly, and her smile shifted instantly to a _very_ fierce glare. "Don't look at me in that tone of voice," I complained. "It's not…"

"And you didn't think you should ask me, first?" Asuna demanded.

Kirito sighed. "Asuna…"

"Asuna, you're like a sister to me and I love you," I told her, "but this is something we have to do. I'm sorry we didn't consult you first, but…" Helplessly, I could only shrug. "If you're dead set against it, Kirito and I can talk to Kikuoka, see if he's fine with just me going."

"N-no…" Asuna murmured, "It's not that I don't want you to go, it's just…" She sighed. "I wish you'd at least involved me in the decision process," she said to Kirito.

He winced slightly. "I'm sorry, Asuna."

I tapped my friend on the shoulder, and she looked at me. "Er, if it's any consolation, we _are_ getting paid handsomely…"

"How much?" I leaned in and whispered the amount into her ear, and her eyes widened as she sucked in a quick breath. "That's… a lot."

Kirito nodded. "I really am sorry I didn't say anything, Asuna, but… I have to do this. Please understand."

She sighed. "Well, if it's a favor for the agent, I guess I can't really complain. He did help you and Nick out earlier, so I guess it's only fair you repay him." She pointed at us. "But you'd better get done as quickly as possible, got it?"

I snapped off a quick salute. "Yes'm."

"Uncle Rythin?" Yui hopped off of Asuna's shoulder and settled down on my knee. "Take care of Daddy, okay?"

I grinned at the girl. "You got it, kiddo. I was gonna do it anyway, but how could I say no to such a cute face?" I poked the girl's cheek gently, making her whine in protest. "Anyway, he's probably going to end up protecting me just as much, after all." I glanced up to see both Kirito and Asuna smiling at me and Yui, and I raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Nothing," they both said innocently before exchanging a glance and bursting out laughing.

Grumbling, I laid back and stared up at the sky. See if I ever help him out of relationship drama again. Hmph.

* * *

 **So hey! It's Nightblade III.**

 **Nick might know who he is, but that doesn't mean he's at all stable. He's got himself more or less under control, but brief rage strikes like the one in the elevator are sadly very common. But he can handle them, he knows how to manage himself, and he's got Kana to help him out if things get too bad. She makes him feel human again, quiets everything inside.**

 **Some things about this story:**

 **1\. First-person. It's going to be told from Nick's point of view, with occasional interludes from Kana's perspective.**

 **2\. This story will span all of Season 2 – the GGO arc, Calibur, and Mother's Rosario.**

 **3\. Don't bring up the April Fool's joke. Just don't.**

 **4\. Absolutely no spoilers about anything that happens later on – nothing about Death Gun and GGO, nothing about the events of Calibur or Mother's Rosario, nothing AT ALL. Got it?**

 **5\. Just in case, I'm reiterating – NO SPOILERS. Okay? Yes this is fanfiction, and yes the majority of you are familiar with the source material already, but I happen to know for a fact that some of my readers are not familiar with it.**

 **Oh, and by the way, someone made a TvTropes page for the Nightblade series. Thanks, dude and/or dudette, you're pretty chill. Readers, help me out here, fill it in! I'm sure there's stuff that isn't on it yet.**

 **Well, that's about it from me. Now it's your turn – favorite, follow, leave a review!**


	2. Flip a Coin

**Chapter 2: Flip a Coin**

* * *

 **December 12** **th** **, 2025**

"Hey! Rythin! Over here!" And cue the music – it's like I can hear the bongos.

I blinked at the loud voice and pinpointed its location; as expected, the boisterous voice came from the female Imp lounging on a stone ledge beside a fountain. I was in Alne, the city at the base of the World Tree - it'd been a while since I was here, and I welcomed the chance to wander around the somewhat empty streets. I mean, NPCs and a few players still wandered around, but half (if not more) of the population had shifted to Yggdrasil City. I shook my head and waved casually to Ziria as I approached. "Hello, Ziria. Who's with us today?"

"Me," a male voice replied, and I looked over to see Koron, the Leprechaun blacksmith of the group. "The others are waiting at the dungeon entrance, Ziria just wanted to meet you personally."

I got along with the group, despite having killed all of them but Ziria in the past. In my defense, I was stressed for time, violently unstable, and they had tried to kill me first; they didn't hold it against me. "Okay, now that Rythin's here let's go!" Ziria cheered. Right, that's why I didn't group up with them very often - Ziria's enthusiasm and get-up-and-go attitude was a bit, er, draining. That, and they couldn't really afford my services that often, even with the 'I killed you all before' discount I gave some customers. I was expensive, what can I say? Comes with being one of the better mercenaries in the game.

Despite all that, I put on my best grin - I did enjoy partying with them, just not constantly - and summoned my wings. "Let's go, then, shall we?" In response, Ziria and Koron summoned their wings - Ziria's the bat-like wings of the Imps, and Koron the mechanical ones of the Leprechauns - and flew into the air. As we flew toward our destination, I angled slightly to be in formation next to Ziria. "So, boss lady, how's the guild doing?"

"Great!" Ziria shouted - though to be fair shouting was necessary, since wind and air resistance and all that meteorological jazz. "We got a few more people asking to join up. It's almost starting to get annoying."

"That's what you get for being a clearer guild," I told her. "People actually know who you are."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." She flashed me a toothy grin. "It's kinda awesome, though, y'know? I mean, before you showed up we were just this rag-tag bunch of bandits, and now we're some awesome guild." The Steel Hearts had been doing pretty well for themselves.

"So who's going on the dungeon raid today?" I asked. The dungeon in question was a challenging climb up a mountain to fight a Frost Ogre at the top; normally not a problem thanks to our wings, but the Frost Ogre was causing a bit of a ruckus - ruckus being a tactical term for 'big-ass blizzard' - that kept us from using our wings during the mission. It was like that mountain back in SAO that Kirito and Lisbeth had climbed that one time, only there wasn't a dragon and there wasn't a metal ingot that came out of the less toothy end.

"Of the guys you know, it's me, Koron, and Eryin," Ziria said. "So there's another five slots open. Most of the others are just new recruits we're trying to test out." She hummed in thought, but eventually just snapped her fingers at Koron. "Yo, Koron, who are the new recruits we're testing out today?"

"Ziria," Koron sighed, "how you became the guild leader is beyond me."

"Because I'm the brigade leader, obviously!" she said with a fist pump. "C'mon, out with it, or it's a penalty!" Obligingly, Koron rattled off a list of names and races; I was glad to hear we had an Undine coming along, since they tended to have higher magical resistances, and from what Koron told me when I asked him about their fighting, two were mostly mages. And I was focusing on fire magic at the moment - trying to get it as high as possible before shifting over - so that gave us at least three methods of hitting the weakness of most of the monsters, not counting any of the Sword Skills that had fire effects. All in all, we had myself - a Cait Sith dagger-user - as well as Ziria the rapier-using Imp, Koron the hammer-using Leprechaun, and Eryin the Pooka and her panpipes as the experienced members that had run the dungeon before.

As for the new kids, I examined them as we came down to land beside them and started putting names to faces. Asmodeus - weird name, one of the devils from the Ars Goetia - the Spriggan seemed to be going for the stealthy rogue-type; in addition to a spear that he currently had slung up on his back, which somehow wasn't catching on the hood of his feathered cloak, he used Illusion magic. He looked at me curiously from his seat on a rocky outcropping as the three of us landed, but just waved at his guild master and kept talking quietly with the woman sitting next to him. The woman was apparently named Uri, and she was a sword-and-shield Salamander warrior with the look of someone who knew how to use the blade. Sitting calmly and whittling away at a piece of wood was a thin player, and the dagger on his hip along with the less restricting clothing gave me the hint this was Mao. The Undine next to him, reading calmly, was therefore Raph.

"Hey, Ziria!" someone almost as personable as the guild leader called out, and I winced; there were two of them? Fan-fucking-tastic. That had to be Gain; Koron had warned me about him. He was a tank, which was good since Koron was really the only other beefy player in the party.

"Hiya, Rythin!" a female laughed, and I grinned as I recognized both Eryin's voice and the loud raucous laughter. "Is our fearless leader running you ragged?"

I waved. "Yo. And she's about as bad as usual." Koron nodded with a sigh. Poor guy – he probably had to deal with her day in and day out.

"Okay, troops, here's the thing. This is Rythin, he's our pal, he's going to be tagging along today's mission." It was like standing just outside the eye of Hurricane Ziria - with a little bit of effort, I could probably escape into peace and quiet, but where I was right now it was intense. "Anyway, you five are taking point. The other four - which is me, Eryin, Koron, and Rythin," she said, "are going to be hanging back, watching how you work together as a team and fight and stuff. Okay?"

Asmodeus nodded calmly. "Sounds like a good plan." He glanced at the other four, and they nodded; seems like they're a team already. Friends, joining the game together and entering a smaller guild so they can be their own little strike force in it, I guess. "We're ready."

The first part of the dungeon run went pretty smoothly - so much so that I didn't even need to do anything. Instead, Eryin and I had a small musical contest, where one of us would play a song and then the other would try to match it on their instrument of choices - I had the advantage when it came to fast changes between notes that had a large gap between them, because I could make chords with the strings of my lute, but her melodies were a lot more creative than mine. I just wasn't that good at improvisation, even with the amount of music I had somewhat memorized.

Asmodeus and the other four worked together like a well-oiled engine; every movement by each of them was thought out, and they seemed to be taking formations without saying a word, formations that they had absolutely no right to be pulling off so smoothly without even a little bit of communication. They really were experienced at what they did; so much so, in fact, that it raised a few alarm bells in my head. I watched them a little more closely during several fights, and came to the inescapable conclusion - they were SAO survivors. There was no other way they could be moving so smoothly otherwise; their motions were just so used to how the virtual world worked that they had to have spent too much time playing otherwise. Even Eugene, the best (not-Kirito) fighter in the game, wasn't that smooth with his actions.

So, at the first Safe Zone - a base camp about a third of the way through the dungeon, with a few tents and a campfire with rocks for sitting around it and everything - I pulled Ziria aside. "Can I have a few minutes alone with your recruits?" I asked her quietly. "There's something I need to verify."

Something flashed in her eyes - if I had to guess, satisfaction at being right. It was an open secret by this point that I was an SAO survivor, since I didn't really make that big a deal about keeping it a secret. "Sure thing, Rythin," she said. "Yo, Eryin! Koron! Get over here!" she shouted suddenly. I winced; so much for subtlety. "Guild peoples meeting!"

Despite the shout, I drifted to where Asmodeus and the four others were sitting - even their seats around a campfire seemed easy, like they'd been practiced way too many times. "Rythin, was it?" Raph asked calmly as I approached. "I was wondering when you'd come by."

Let's see, should I play the game, or just cut to the chase? What kind of question was that, anyway? Always play the game. "I've been watching you five work together," I said. "Your movements and formations are very fluid. You must have had plenty of practice."

Asmodeus's lips quirked slightly. "We have, indeed." It was the first I'd heard him speak, and his voice was about as deep as I expected - slightly lower than the tenor I usually kept mine at. "As have you, from what the rumors say."

"Oh, come on, Deus," Uri said with a sigh, "Let's not beat around the bush." Tch. She obviously doesn't get it. A shame – Asmodeus seemed to know the game fairly well. "Yeah, we're from SAO, same as you." Not surprising they knew who I was - I was kinda well-known as the Tactician in the death game.

"The Tactician..." Mao mused, watching me. "They say you can see, well, attacks. Sword Skills and magic. Is it true?" In response, I triggered Future Step with a blink, watching their eyes widen as my eyes bled to a blood-red color.

"It's true," I said, and my voice was steady and low. "Future Step lets me see what the system assists."

"Neat," Gain said, staring at my eyes. "So the red eyes thing, that's what shows us if it's active?"

I grinned, turning it off. "It's like my signature or something."

After we broke camp, we started along the second segment of the dungeon run. Now that I knew for certain Asmodeus and his group were from SAO, I could rest easy; they wouldn't fall to enemies like this, and I told Ziria my observations. She nodded, watching them as they fought one of the bear-like enemies with mottled white fur. "I thought so. They reminded me of you, when they first came around and asked for a job."

"Of me? How so, exactly?"

"Like they were fighting a little more desperately than we were." She shrugged. "Like they didn't have a limit to how ruthless they could be when needed. Kinda like you when we, uh... attacked you in the forest." Koron had assured me, when they first hired me, that he had scolded Ziria thoroughly and that she had seemed contrite enough.

I nodded slowly. "It was a shame you chose to attack me, though I think things have worked out for the best, at any rate. Anyway, if you're looking for my recommendation, let them join. They work together very well, and you won't have any complaints from them so long as you let them keep their little squad together. By the looks of things they're professional about working alone or in a group, but they'll be more effective with people they know and trust."

Ziria shook her head with a grin. "I had a feeling you'd say that. I thought I hired you to say things that weren't obvious."

I just smiled slightly, not saying a word. Then, since it looked a little bit like the fighters needed my help, I started chanting, casting the spell I had memorized; when I finished the spell and snapped, the somatic component to my spells I had personalized, a small spark shot toward the bear and ignited its fur. Ignite was a simple spell that gave the Flame status effect, simple damage over time. Mao took the opportunity to slice at it with his dagger, Asmodeus standing in the back and chanting a spell to increase his evasiveness; Mao's dagger bit into the monster's neck as he slipped past its claws easily, killing it. He glanced at me. "Thanks for the assist."

"I just broke its pattern," I said with a wave. "You could have killed it by yourselves, I'm just feeling we can move on now."

And we did; we skipped past the second base camp and moved straight into the third part of the dungeon. The blizzard was getting even harder to fight in, and Asmodeus was kept busy casting Night Vision and other movement buffs every time they wore out. I stepped up my magic game, flinging bursts of flame and fireballs with abandon at the ice-based monsters even while Ziria was moving in and out, her rapier licking at the beast's weak spots. That's what made the dungeon so good for grinding; the jump in difficulty between segments was almost a straight line up. Less-skilled parties could hang out in the first segment, while talented fighters could blow through the first two areas and then fight to their hearts' content in the third and hardest part of the dungeon.

We eventually managed to fight our way through the regular mooks and made it to the top of the mountain; it was cold, freezing, and any other synonym for 'holy fuck I feel like my ears are ice'. The Frost Ogre was obligingly waiting for us in the center of the flat top of the mountain, and I cracked my knuckles. "Alright then, ladies, gentlemen, Ziria. Let's do this."

Not taking any offense at my offhand snark, Ziria grinned wolfishly, cracking her knuckles as well. "Any ideas, mister Tactician?"

I licked my lips and let myself fall into the half-aware state of bloodlust, swaying back and forth slightly. "Weak to fire, strong against water, weak to blunt and smash, strong to stab," I rattled off in almost a sing-song voice, my eyes fixed on the enemy. I wanted to draw my dagger and sink it in the thing's throat, but that couldn't happen yet, not yet, I had to wait. If I went in now I'd be dead before I could get close. Taking a breath, my gaze firmed. "Two squads. Squad one, Asmodeus and your four. Focus on melee damage and staying alive. Squad two, the others. Koron, you're acting as tank in the event we draw aggro, Ziria, you're our melee damager. Eryin, buff the party in general but our squad in particular. I'll be using fire spells, so anything to regenerate magic or buff my output would be great." I was deliberately being vague on Asmodeus's orders; he was clearly the leader of their group, not Ziria and not me, so letting him give the orders would work out far better than if I was telling them what to do individually. I hadn't missed the way the other four looked at him before following any of Ziria's orders; it might be a problem later on for the guild leader, but Ziria could figure it out. There was a reason her guild was called the Steel Hearts, after all, and it wasn't just because of their weaponry.

The Frost Ogre roared; the orders given, we leapt into battle.

* * *

 **December 13** **th** **, 2025**

"Thanks for picking me up, Kazuto," I said.

"No problem," he replied. "It was more or less on the way, so you don't even have to pay for gas."

Eh... Damn, I had to choose between my greed and not being a dick to my best friend. "If we need a second day, I'm paying, okay?" There. Slightly greedy, but I'm not going to hurt Kazuto. Then again, Kikuoka's paying for everything, so whatever.

"Deal," he chuckled.

I spent the rest of the ride trying to calculate exactly how much I'd owe him for the ride if we needed to spend another day going to the hospital to play the game. Well, gas was _this_ much, and his bike went for _that_ many miles per gallon... The numbers floated in front of me in my mind's eye, and I twitched my fingers as I moved them around, multiplying and dividing and subtracting and adding. I didn't have a calculator on me, so I had to do it the dirty way; pull out the whole numbers first, then do the decimals after storing the first output to the left. Shift the decimal to the left and multiply, then add to the first output... I'd probably owe him enough that it wouldn't be negligible, though I'd need to ask for the mileage we traveled to and from the hospital.

Before long, though, we pulled up to our destination, the Toritsu Central Hospital, parking in one of the free spots. After the engine cut out, I let go of Kazuto's waist and hopped off of the bike. Normally, he'd use the sidecar, like when he was carting Sugu around from place to place, but he and I both agreed that it was a waste of time, not to mention how he was trying to keep it quiet from Sugu that we were transferring out. Well, as quiet as possible. Anyway, I was gay for Kazuto so I had no complaints holding on to him - that or I just didn't give a shit about physical contact with my friends and people I trusted. Either or, one of the two.

We walked to the room Kikuoka had pointed out - Kazuto seemed to know where he was going, so I just assumed this was the hospital he had woken up in. It was definitely closer to his house than it was to mine, so it didn't really surprise me that I had been in a different location. It just made it easier for me; I just had to follow my friend.

"I'm ninety-nine percent sure this is a hoax," Kazuto mused out loud. "You can't kill someone in the real world from the virtual one anymore."

I made a non-committal grunt. "I don't know," I said with a shrug. "Remember how that asshole was experimenting with mind control? Well, what if someone completely accidentally stumbled onto part of the secret? Wham, bam, thank you ma'am, we have ourselves a means - excessive stress to the mind, such as handling being shot, triggers a heart attack, they're dead. Besides, the dead players were pros, so there were bound to be people holding grudges. You know how it is with Trinity's enemies." Our list of enemies kept growing - Kana and I were keeping a running total, organized by name and cross-referenced by threat and concentration of profanity per message. Repeat offenders got a neat little star next to their name. I'm pretty sure that most of the angry messages were almost solely because I was a gigantic asshole, but some were probably because one of us killed them.

"I guess," he said, glancing at the piece of paper in his hand and then at the door number. "Did you listen to the guy's speech?"

"Excessive bass, rambling pretentiously about how he was Death Gun and going to carve his name into our hearts with fear or something like that?" I had listened to it the night before while doing my research into the game proper; Death Gun was just acting like the typical megalomaniac, and I didn't really see any reason to believe he actually possessed the power to kill through the game. But there was still that small doubt in the back of my mind; the theory I presented, the one about being able to cause a heart attack, was far-fetched. I mean, none of Sugou's research actually worked anyway, so it was a ridiculous stretch to think someone had managed to weaponize it to this extent. But still, Death Gun had shot the players and then they had died almost instantly after - and from what Kikuoka said, neither of the players had a history of heart disease.

"Yeah, that's the one."

"Nope." Kazuto just rolled his eyes, grinning. I was making light of the situation mostly because he seemed to be taking things so seriously. "Hey, it's no big deal," I said, leaning forward and stretching. "We just have to go into this game, poke around a bit, see if we can figure out what's going -" My eyes widened immensely. "We are going to be _buddy cops_ oh gods this is the best thing!" I frowned suddenly. "Crap, now we have to decide who's who."

"I'm the world-weary vet," Kazuto said with a small grin.

"Deal. I wanted to be the excited, gung-ho rookie anyway. That one usually gets to shoot someone. Besides, you're better at games like this than me." We stopped outside room 7025, and Kazuto hesitated. I glanced at him, concern tingeing my voice. "You doing alright?"

He grimaced. "It's that one percent chance that this is real that bugs me. I just..." He shook his head and knocked before sliding the door open. "Hello? Anyone here?"

"Yep!" a cheerful female voice called out. I realized there were two beds set up in the room, one for each of us most likely, and a nurse standing in between them. She seemed normal enough - glasses, brown hair, yadda yadda yadda. Nothing that really stood out. "What's going on, Kirigaya?"

Kazuto was more or less frozen in the doorway. "M-miss Aki..." He bowed. "It's nice to see you again."

"It seems you know each other," I remarked as I stepped inside, shrugging off my coat.

"Sure do," the nurse said. "I'm Aki Natsuki, but you can just call me Aki. I watched Kirigaya while he slept." Because that's not creepy at all. Aki stepped over and casually squeezed Kazuto's butt; he yelped, and while I stared in amazement the nurse continued to touch my friend all over. Also, that came out wrong, bad brain. "Wow, looks like you've finally got some meat on you." She squeezed his biceps and smiled. "You could use some filling out, though. You sure you're eating right?"

"Yeah, I'm eating, I'm eating!"

"His girlfriend's meals probably helped," I said absently. Kazuto was still a little off-balance by the way she had calmly groped him - though I guess if she was the one taking care of him while he was in SAO she was doing things way more personal on a daily basis. Though thinking about Asuna I think her bribe is ending soon, so I'm going to start losing out on those delicious sandwiches. Maybe there's another bit of information I can use to wheedle some more sandwiches out of her...

"Wait a minute," Kazuto said suddenly, "what are you doing here?"

"Your friend in the suit and glasses told me about your mission," she replied as she hugged Kazuto, making him grunt slightly. "He said something about going into a virtual network and doing some reconnaissance, something like that. I can't believe he'd ask you or..." She trailed off, staring at me. "You know, I don't think we've been introduced. I don't know your name!"

I grinned slightly. "You've been too busy groping my friend. My name is Nick Weyr, ma'am. Nice to meet you."

Aki smiled and reached out, tilting my head to the left and right before touching my shoulders. I flinched away, taking a few steps back, and she smiled. "Oh, don't be like that. C'mon, let me take a look at you."

"Better do what she says," Kazuto sighed. "She won't give up until she's examined you."

I grimaced, but stood still; she squeezed my arms and shoulders, tapping my side occasionally. "Wow, you're doing great for someone that was in SAO." How did she... Oh, right, the whole 'looking really gaunt still' thing. There were still small signs, even a year after we escaped; putting that much weight back on was difficult, especially with my activities. That, or Kikuoka told her about our situation. One of the two.

"Martial arts," I said calmly as she poked at my back. Then she squeezed my butt, and I whirled around, snapping, "Do you mind?!" I hate it when people invade my private space, and that region and its counterpart in front were especially private zones of no-touchy. I was still kinda weird about it even around Kana, so there was no way in hell I was letting this random person touch me there.

"Oops, sorry," she said. "Kirigaya never seems to mind, though."

"That's because you never listened to me and I gave up trying," Kazuto said with a sigh.

"Anyway, your suit friend found out I was in charge of your rehab, Kirigaya, and so he asked me to keep an eye on your monitors while you dive." Aki grinned. "They took me off my normal shift and everything. The head nurse wasn't happy, but what could she do about it? The government wants something, they're going to get it." I picked my bed and sat down, relaxing with a sigh. Trust Kikuoka to screw everybody else's day up just to get what he wants. Almost admirable, in a way. She held her hand out to Kazuto. "Well, Kirigaya, I guess you and me are back together again, huh?"

After a second, he shook her hand. "Yeah. Thanks for being here." He frowned. "Uh, so it's just us today, no Kikuoka?"

"You really think that guy would leave his cushy desk chair to come stare at two motionless bodies for several hours?" I drawled.

"Good point."

"He did ask me to give you two a message, though," Aki said as she reached into a pocket of her uniform. "Here it is." 'It' being a folded piece of paper.

I sat up, curious, and moved to read over Kazuto's shoulder. "'Email your reports to me at the usual address'," I read. "'Your fees and expenses will be paid when you finish the mission, so please don't forget to send me an invoice.'" Then I glanced at the postscript - 'P.S. Even though there's a pretty nurse in the room, you're still on the clock. Try to keep those hormones of yours under control.' - and chuckled. "That part of the message was for you only," I told Kazuto. He just crushed the message into a small little ball as quickly as possible before shoving it into his pocket, his cheeks slightly red.

"Um," Kazuto said, "If it's okay, we should probably connect to the network now." I shrugged and sat down on the bed again, pulling my AmuSphere out of the carrying bag I had brought with me and plugging it in.

"Everything's set up," Aki said as she moved over to her station and started getting things out. "Okay, boys, strip!"

"Wh- Why!" Kazuto exclaimed. In the meantime, I was taking my shirt off without really caring. Kazuto was my friend and so I didn't care, and Aki was beneath my interest. Basically, my nudity taboo was more or less non-existent.

"For the electrodes?" Aki said, a smile in her voice. She giggled. "Oh, don't be shy. I've seen all your goodies before. But not yours, Nick." She winked at me, and I just stared at her impassively. Kazuto, however, placed his hands in front of his crotch.

"Actually," he said, "can I just take off my shirt?"

Aki sighed. Wait, did she actually want to see Kazuto naked? Huh. That kid was a godsdamn magnet for anything with two X chromosomes, though I don't know why I'm surprised at this point. She made a sullen noise of agreement, and Kazuto sighed. "Miss Aki, I'm ready," I said as I laid down on the bed I had chosen.

She came over and carefully applied the electrodes to my chest - three on each side of my torso - and arms while Kazuto took off his shirt and got ready for his electrodes. "There," she said once she was finished with me. "You're all set." Strange; she hadn't cared about the scar in the slightest. It was like she had seen scars of that magnitude before and just got used to seeing them. Hmm... Eh, she's a nurse, and apparently a physical therapy nurse. Most likely nothing.

I nodded and put the AmuSphere on, lying down and getting comfortable. I wouldn't feel any discomfort in the virtual world, but coming back would be a different matter, especially if I lost circulation in something. I closed my eyes and took a few deep breaths, forming my shields to my heartbeat. After I was ready, I said, "Link start!"

The world fell away into a burst of color, and I felt weightless; as the system check ran its course, making sure everything was hooked up correctly, I wondered how this game was going to hold up. I mean, I was - without hubris - one of the better players in ALO; most SAO survivors that had fought in the front lines at some point or another and survived were just an order of magnitude better fighters than those without that kind of experience. Life and death is a hard teacher but a good one, after all.

I was deposited into a loading screen of sorts, where I could see the world I was entering; it seemed smoky, for lack of a better term. Like the air was thicker or something. I grimaced; was I going to have to deal with this smog the entire time I was here? At least it wasn't too bad. Kinda like having the water-breathing spell active during that underwater quest, where the air was kinda thick but still breathable. At least I wouldn't drown if the buff ran out, so small favors, silver linings, so on and so forth. A small message notified me that my appearance was going to be chosen randomly from a selection of male avatars, so I didn't have any sort of customization options available to me. A shame, really; I would have liked to make sure I didn't look absolutely ridiculous. Still, I probably wouldn't look too bad.

A few seconds later, I arrived in the game proper in a flash of light. I looked around; I was standing in some sort of pavilion made of concrete, a raised platform. Steps led down to a road with what appeared to be cast-iron fences, players with their faces cast in iron, and some holographic triangular projections hawking different wares. In my HUD I could see my name and health in the bottom right, and what appeared to be the temperature and some sort of distance counter in the bottom left. I cracked my neck and stretched; everything moved the way I expected. It seemed a lot more serious than ALO, though I guess it's fair; the point of this game is more or less slaughtering the opponent rather than getting better yourself.

I moved off of the pavilion to the reflective surface right behind me; naturally, the makers included a mirrored area behind the spawn so that the new players could examine their new appearance. It was very convenient. Anyway, just by my movement alone I could tell my height was more or less the same as my ALO avatar - about my real height - which was good, because my movements weren't thrown off. Examining my appearance closely, I didn't really have any complaints; my hair was shorter than in real life and a slightly darker brown - almost black, really. Some of it hung over my forehead, and there was a dark red streak down the center and shifting to the left. The hair in the back reached my neck; for some reason, I was getting a lion's mane vibe. It was pretty neat. In addition to that, my skin was slightly darker than real life, and there was a scar over my left eye. I grinned, and realized my eye teeth were sharper than they were in real life; the leonine look just got more and more pronounced. I assumed that the simple white jacket and grey pants I was wearing was my default equipment, and nodded in satisfaction. It could be worse, I guess. Better, too, but definitely worse.

"Hey, that's the M8200 model!" a guy said, popping up over my shoulder. It was with a supreme act of will that I restrained myself from whirling and punching him in the face, but I was only able to hold the reaction down to a startled oath and a jump backwards. The guy had one of those weird flappy hats and goggles, and he did not give me the feeling of someone normal. "That one's pretty rare! One mega credit for the account. C'mon, help me out here!"

I blinked, jaw dropped. "Uh...uh-uh," I managed to get out. Then, my eyes narrowed. "Now get away from me." He was invading my personal space and the viper was not taking too kindly to it; my eyes narrowed as I automatically started finding ways to hurt and kill the man in front of me.

"Sheesh, no need to get nasty about it," the guy said, slinking away. If my conversion factor was right, the mega credit would have been worth like one million credits, which was in turn worth like... uh, get rid of the zeroes... It would have been worth a lot of real money.

There was another flash of light, and I grinned. Oh, good, Kirito was here. When the light cleared, though, I blinked in confusion. That... That was Kirito? He was... shorter than expected. And with longer hair. Then he turned around, and my eyes widened; it took literally every ounce of self-restraint that I had to not collapse on the ground with laughter. Even still, when he tugged at a strand of long black hair in confusion I had to bite my lip to avoid bursting out in laughter. Shit, I might actually have an aneurysm if this keeps up. Poor, poor, Kirito. "Rythin?" he asked, and I nodded cautiously before nodding at the reflective surface beside me. With a worried look on his face, he looked at his reflection. "Holy crap!" With his startled yelp, I finally lost my battle against the laughter and started howling with merriment, sinking to the ground as my knees gave out under me.

Kirito had to be the - I'm assuming here - prettiest boy I'd ever seen - if I didn't know better, I would have sworn the player standing in front of me was a girl. I mean, long black hair that reached the waist, a beautiful face that rivalled Asuna's, and a slender body? Yeah, the character in front of me was more or less a girl, minus the, well, required secondary sexual characteristics. Kirito tried to brush some of his bangs out of his face, with no luck, and sighed. "I wish I looked a little more soldier-ish..." His voice set me off again; even his voice was higher-pitched, closer to a girl's contralto than the tenor he usually had.

Holy shit, this was actually starting to hurt. Like, my stomach was starting to complain that I was laughing too hard. That, and I think I was starting to see spots from oxygen deprivation.

"Holy bazongas!" Oh, it's that other idiot again. "That's the F1300 model, isn't it!" Kirito whirled around, pressing himself up against the wall - his hair fluttered in the air, and I think at some point during this conversation I couldn't see because I was laughing too hard. "That avatar's so rare I've only heard about one until now. I want it! I'll give you two mega credits for your account." Hey, dick, my account is worth just as much as... Pfft, I can't even look at him without losing my shit. "C'mon, lady, what do you say?"

"L-lady?" Dear _gods_ , his voice! Then he gasped and patted his chest frantically, setting me off into another gale of laughter. I was laughing so hard that I was starting to gasp for air, barely able to fill my lungs before the hilarity caught me again. Reassured he didn't have breasts, Kirito sighed in relief. "Eh, hate to break it to you, guy, but I'm a guy, too."

"Holy crap!" the guy shouted, grabbing Kirito's shoulder. "Then that means you got the M9000 model!" He held up his hand. "I'll give you four, no, five for it! Sell it to me! C'mon!" My laughter had transitioned to the point of being inaudible a long time ago as I was barely managing to take in enough oxygen to survive, let alone actually laugh. My laughing was more or less my throat, lungs, and stomach spasming and _wow_ that's a really weird way to think of laughter.

"Sorry, but this isn't a default avatar." Oh gods, Kirito, stop talking, I can't breathe. "It's a converted one. I can't exchange it for cash." At least _try_ to talk in a lower voice. Please. For Argo and Asuna's sake, if nothing else - I'm pretty sure my girlfriend would be sad if I died here. For that matter, what would my readings look like?

"Aw, that sucks... You and the other guy..." The dude in the aviator hat - I think it's an aviator's hat? I was a bit distracted by the extremely effeminate Kirito - slumped, disappointed.

"Yeah, well, later." Kirito stalked toward me, glaring angrily - which did not have such a great effect on me, and I burst into a new round of laughter, somehow managing to not collapse. "Are you done?"

"Hey, if you ever change your mind, give me the first bid!" the guy shouted. Irritated, Kirito snorted.

The - I hesitate to even think of him as a boy at this point - stepped around me, making sure I couldn't see him. My main source of hilarity gone, I managed to somehow get myself under control to the point that I was able to stop laughing, panting as I desperately drew in the oxygen I needed. "Holy shit," I managed to gasp, wincing as I gingerly pressed at my sore side. "Kirito, don't take this the wrong way, but if I were into girls you'd be a very dangerous trap."

"I hate you." The soft voice made me snicker, but so long as I didn't actually look at him I'd be okay. "C'mon, let's look around. See if we can figure out how to get a name for ourselves."

"To attract Death Gun's attention," I said, nodding in comprehension. "Bullet of Bullets, maybe?" Kirito nodded, and I grinned. This is going to be fun. "Lead on, Kirito." Then, I immediately regretted that. Still, I needed to become desensitized to his appearance, and this was the fastest way to do it.

We wandered through the alleys, staring at the sky and the various shapes and promotions there. Every time Kirito paused to study something, though, every male player in about a three yard radius started whistling and catcalling; this invariably drove Kirito to stalk forward, mortally offended, while I followed at a leisurely pace with a smirk on my face. Occasionally, one of the braver players would try to get in my way, but all I had to do was glare at the bastard and he'd quickly rethink his decision. Sometimes, being able to silently promise a painful death to anyone stupid enough to touch Kirito could come in handy. I mean, yeah, they'd all think I was escorting a beautiful lady, possibly her boyfriend, but that just made it funnier when Kirito glanced at me only to grimace and speed up slightly.

As we walked around, though, it quickly became painfully obvious that we needed to split up or we'd never find the main place to buy weapons and armor and sign up for the tournament. At a branch, I went left while he went right; after a few seconds, I couldn't see him anymore - but I could hear the whistling from where he had been. At least I could trace him that way, I guess.

About ten minutes later, I was walking down an alleyway when I saw a trio of typical tough-guy looking players. The ones with bulging muscles, black leather vests, and large guns that just made it look like they were compensating for something - that kind of tough guy. More interestingly, they seemed to be bothering a female player; she was looking kinda bored in the way that said she could handle herself but didn't feel like dealing with these people, and I was about to walk past and ignore it. After all, it's rude to interrupt people when they're working, and it's not like I know much of anything about human courtship rituals. Everything I know, I had to learn from Kirito, Asuna, and Argo; of course, that didn't really cover this situation. If this had been a business deal, then I might have had solid ground to stand on. Then I heard what the lead player said. "So I made this neat knife out of the starship metal. You wanna know how?"

"Please, spare me," the woman said. I took a closer look, my interest attracted by mention of a knife in this gun game, and saw why they were trying to impress her. By which I mean that she had customized equipment, so obviously was a high-ranking player. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if she was in the Bullet of Bullets herself. Though, if I had to guess the male players were more interested in her appearance - long white hair, a red miniskirt, and a dark red top that left very, very little to the imagination.

"Oh, c'mon," the guy said. "I put a lot of time into this."

"Excuse me," I said, cutting in, "but I believe the lady indicated she wasn't interested."

"And who the hell are you?" the guy snarled, turning to me. The woman glanced at me, obviously unimpressed by my entrance. She probably thought I was going to use the 'rescue' as an icebreaker. Heh. I was going to use it to break _something_ , but it probably wouldn't be ice.

"Just a random passerby," I said. "One that's very interested in that knife you claim to have."

He smirked. "I get it. You're a new player, right? And you want to impress the lady." I just shrugged, letting him think what he wanted. Sure, let's roll with that. You're wrong on very many levels, you idiot, but if being wrong would goad you into falling for the trap, then so much the better. At my shrug, the woman snorted and looked off into the distance. "See this?" He patted a sheathed weapon on his hip, and I felt a small smirk creep onto my face as I recognized a knife sheath. Yes, I very much want that. "Took me two weeks to make since I had to carve it from a solid chunk of metal." Interesting. So you couldn't just buy a knife here? Well, I guess it made sense, since this _was_ called Gun Gale Online, presumably for a reason. He leaned in close to me. "Now beat it."

"Your knife." My voice was calm and flat. "I want it. Give it to me."

"Hu-uh?" He laughed in my face. "Why should I do that?"

I chuckled calmly. "I'm not asking you to just give it to me." Well, I had, but I didn't really expect him to just hand it over. "How about a wager?"

"A wager?" Yes, little fishy, take the nice bait. There's no hook here, nope.

I grinned, my eyes gleaming with avarice. "I'll explain. Do you have a bullet on you? A single bullet will do." He nodded at one of his cronies and the guy produced a small handgun before cocking the chamber or whatever the correct gun-related term is, ejecting whatever bullet had been there previously and catching it. The man tossed it to me, and I caught it carefully. "Excellent. The goal of the game is to be the first to grab the bullet after it hits the ground. I'll drop it when you tell me to, so that there's less surprise for either of us. As for rules..." I grinned sharply. "We start a certain distance apart and can't cross a line. Other than that, no outside interference and that's it." I tossed the bullet in the air with a small flourish, catching it again and flashing my opponent a predatory grin. "The wager is your knife for my avatar."

He snorted. "So why should I want your av, noob?"

"Because it's a converted account," I said. "And because I was offered a mega credit for it earlier, and because..." I leaned close to him and whispered, "Because I'm an SAO survivor." Something complicated flashed in his eyes, though he eventually settled on greed. I grinned slightly; the fish was on the hook. Now it was time to reel him in. "Think about the fame you could have," I purred softly. "You, the proud owner of an SAO survivor's account. You, able to claim to have survived the death game and have the proof to back it up."

I knew he was sold on the thought when he leaned back, crossing his arms. "You have a deal," he ground out.

I nodded. "Very well, then. If you could give your knife to the lady?"

"So why am I getting involved in a testosterone match?" she asked, raising an eyebrow as my opponent stripped off his knife and offered it to her. Despite her words, she took it, glancing at it before returning to lounge against the wall.

"Because while I'm an honorable player," I said with a mocking half-bow, "I can't trust that these fine gentlemen won't renege on the deal when I win." Heh. Honorable.

The woman studied me for a while, her lips pursed. "You're putting a lot on the line here," she said finally. "I'm interested."

"I enjoy gambling," I said with a shrug. "It keeps things interesting."

The man and I took positions, each of us facing the other behind a line in the street. The guy crouched, taking a position that would let him lunge forward as soon as the bullet hit the ground. For my part, I simply drew one leg up and balanced, ignoring the snickers of the other players. I knew what I was doing. This was going to be interesting, seeing how this played out - if I fucked up, well then, I'd be in a lot of trouble. But I had a feeling I'd be just fine, since I was me. Again, not hubris - just being aware of my own abilities.

"Drop it!"

At the guy's shout, I obliged; I released the bullet, and it dropped toward the ground almost slowly. I took a deep breath and tensed up, watching my target carefully. I needed to time this perfectly, or I'd miss my mark - and my entire strategy relied on hitting the mark. My heartbeat started to race, the shields weakening slightly, and I felt my lips curl back to bare my teeth. The viper's rage filled me, and I felt my body shiver with energy. Yes... I should be just fine.

The bullet hit the ground with the dull ring of metal against stone, and we both moved at the same time. The man lunged forward, arm outstretched and grasping for the bouncing piece of metal - and I just lashed out with my foot. With a meaty thud, the metal toe of my boot slammed into the man's face an instant before he reached the bullet, and his neck snapped back with the force of my kick. He went sprawling, and I had plenty of time to just stroll over and pick up the bullet absently. "Game, set, match," I said, dropping the bullet on his prone form. "I'll be taking the knife. Thanks so very much for playing." I could stand to be a little nicer to the guy, but he had lost and I had won.

Snarling at me, the guy scrambled to his feet. "Cheating bastard," he snapped.

"I don't think so," I hissed calmly - and dangerously. My shields were still down, and the viper was hissing loudly in my ears. "I specifically stated that the only rules were starting outside the line and no outside interference. Nothing prohibited physical intervention between the players." Translation: I never said I couldn't kick you in the face and you never said I couldn't kick you in the face, so shut up and deal. I held my hand out to the silver-haired woman expectantly. "Knife, please?"

With a smile, she handed it to me. "That was very impressive. Still a risky gamble, though."

I smirked. "See, the thing is? I never gamble." It was a deliberate exaggeration, but it did get her to laugh slightly. As I strapped the knife and sheath to my right forearm, I was grabbed and spun around roughly. "Can I help you?" I drawled, looking at the three players.

"Asshole!" the leader spat. "Give me my knife back!"

With a sudden glare and the rasp of steel, my new knife was suddenly at his throat, pricking it gently. "That so?" I growled. "You want to try taking it from me?" I couldn't actually hurt him in the town, but terrifying him wasn't out of the question. Any idiot with half a brain would be able to sense the bloodlust from that simple question. By the way the woman shifted behind me, drawing to the side away from me, I knew she could feel it.

"N-no..." the guy muttered, drawing away from the knifepoint in a hurry. "K-keep the knife, prick! Piece of shit!" He and his buddies split, getting away as fast as possible.

"So now tell me how you really feel," I said, rolling my eyes. With a small sigh of something almost like regret, I sheathed the knife again and placed my finger against my pulse, forcing myself to regain my calm and rebuild the shields; I tried to keep the bloodlust linked to my pulse, building the shields around that, so when my pulse was calm I was calm. With a final deep breath, my pulse was back to normal and I turned to the woman. "So. I'm looking for where to sign up for the Bullet of Bullets. Would you mind showing me the way?"

The woman studied me for a bit before grimacing. "I have a boyfriend," she said.

That's not an answer to my... Oh, right, she probably thinks I was trying to hit on her. The fact that I avoided looking at her face, keeping my eyes around her neck line, probably didn't help. I hated looking at people. It made the viper more eager. I'd managed to get around that by only looking at their face from my peripheral vision, but it did mean my eyes usually strayed a bit south when speaking; either that, or they usually ended up wondering why I was staring at a point just behind their ear. "And I have a girlfriend," I said. "Now that we've mutually and independently assured I'm not trying to hit on, flirt with, or otherwise impress you, would you mind showing me the way to where to sign up for the Bullet of Bullets?"

Surprisingly, the woman laughed. "Hey, you're alright. My name's Musketeer X, but you can call me Musketeer or just X if you want." She shrugged, turning and starting to walk. "I was about to go sign up myself, so you're welcome to tag along."

With a shrug, I started following her. "I'm Rythin. Nice to meet you, X."

As we walked, Musketeer X struck up a conversation. "So, you're pretty obviously new to this game. What made you switch over?"

I shrugged, running my hand over a cast-iron fence overlooking a road with cars and trucks driving along. "I've been playing fantasy games, mostly. You know, swords, magic, high-fantasy kind of stuff."

"Switching from fantasy to this dump? That's a huge shift," Musketeer X sighed.

"Tell me about it," I groaned. "I never realized air could be this thick before. And it stinks, good lord."

Musketeer X smiled. "You get used to it, eventually. Why'd you switch?"

I glanced at her. "A change of pace, mostly," I said. "The other VR games I've played have all had some element of fantasy to them, so guns and cyberpunk was the obvious choice." I chuckled. "My friend and I just converted our accounts today, figured we'd try out the tournament." Wonder if Kirito managed to find his way? Knowing him, he's probably lost. Either that or some random stranger took pity on him based on his appearance alone and is showing him around.

"The BoB tournament is pretty hardcore, you know. Pretty much every pro in the game is going to be trying to win the thing," Musketeer X told me. "A little strange that you're going to start off with it. Do you even have armor?"

"My only equipment so far is what I spawned with and the knife." I wasn't sure how many of my skills from ALO would transfer appropriately, but if it came to it I knew how to fight even without Sword Skills.

"Great," she sighed. "You got guts, though, Rythin. How about this - after we sign up, I'll show you to the market. I mean, you might not be able to buy anything... How much money do you have, anyway?"

I swiped open my menu and studied the readout. "Says here I just have 1000 credits." At her wince, I chuckled. "That's... not enough, is it."

"It is if you want to start out just grinding monsters for money," she said. "And if you don't want to pay real money..." She trailed off, and I shook my head. I could have just put it on Kikuoka's bill, but a small part of me rebelled against the pay-to-win strategy. I was good enough to win by my own merits, not by how much money I could give to the developers. They were already getting the monthly subscription, and that was enough for me. "So the best way for you to get money fast enough is gambling. It's unreliable, but the fastest way to get money."

"Out of curiosity," I said, "why are you telling me this? BoB's a tournament, so it would be in your best interest to..." I blinked, narrowing my eyes. "...fill the ranks with as weak players as possible, so that you have an easier time. Is that it?"

Musketeer X just laughed and shook her head. "It's because you interest me," she said. "I mean, not many people would risk losing their converted avatar just for a knife. I want to see what else you're capable of." She grinned, glancing at me. "And the best way to do that is go up against you in the BoB." I didn't reply, instead just looking forward with a small smile on my face. "So that I have some time to think about it, what's your stats look like?"

I swiped open my menu again and tapped a few buttons, searching around the menu and familiarizing myself with it. "Apparently, AGI primary and DEX secondary? Third in STR and the others are just kinda whatever." My stats were, thanks primarily to my time in Aincrad, high enough that I had a fairly good spread, though because of my fighting style - knife work and martial arts, emphasis on movement - I had focused primarily on agility and dexterity. Strength was more just a bonus thanks to blending the martial arts with my knife work.

"AGI?" Musketeer X grimaced. "You've got a bit of a problem, then."

I frowned. "Because the metagame's shifted toward strength builds, right? New guns have a high strength requirement and so people that focused on agility for whatever reasons they had started to fall behind." At least, that's what the research had turned up; XeXeeD had actually been talking about that when he had been killed by Death Gun. The guy had been laughing about it, but from what I could tell XeXeeD had suggested players put their points into agility, while he put his into strength. So when the metagame shifted, he was better off. Actually pretty smart, though he got killed for his troubles.

"Exactly," she said. "Without enough strength, you won't be able to use the bigger guns." I just shrugged, not entirely concerned. I didn't even have enough money to buy armor, let alone guns and whatever else I'd need. Eh, not a huge deal - I wasn't really planning on using guns, anyway. I just didn't like them; they were too impersonal. All I had to do was point and pull the trigger - the bullet did the rest, and that was where the fun was. I wanted to feel the resistance of my knife cutting through flesh, but with a gun all I could feel was the recoil of the hunk of cold metal. That wasn't fun at all.

Eventually, we reached what Musketeer X called the Governor's Office - apparently, it was the center of this city, which was called SBC Glocken - a large open space where players could gather to form squads and prepare for hunts and the like. Holograms where everywhere, and there was a large display in the center of the entrance hall touting the Bullet of Bullets 3. As I followed Musketeer X, I was a little surprised to see how many people were wearing some form of mask or glasses. Well, I guess it makes sense, since from what little I'd seen there were a lot of dry, sandy places where having the eyes protected would help out. Can't see, can't fire a gun - can't fire a gun, get shot down. Musketeer X led me to the right side of the hall and approached what she told me were the registration booths. I entered one and tapped the screen; to my surprise, it asked me for real-life information like my address, and whether I wanted a virtual prize or a real-world one. It did say that entering false information was acceptable, but I wouldn't be able to receive top prizes. "Hey, X?" I asked, leaning out and looking over.

"Yeah?"

"Why would I need to enter my real address and stuff like that?"

Musketeer X leaned out to look at me, her silver hair hanging over her eyes before she blew it out of her face in irritation. "If you do well in the BoB, you get prizes. You don't have to fill in the information if you don't want to, but that just means you don't get a cool real-world prize if you do well. I think in-game prizes are dyes or rare equipment, and real-world rewards are model guns."

Shrugging, I turned and filled in my information, not seeing a good reason to lie. I always enjoyed cool prizes; besides, what I got - if anything - might just be my souvenir from this particular mission. I mean, I kept the NerveGear from being stuck in Aincrad, fighting for my life daily, and the knife scar from being cut by Sugou. If this mission went south - and things did seem to head that way with alarming regularity - I'd want a souvenir. "All done," I announced as I tapped the submission button at the bottom and stepped back from the registration booth. Another screen appeared, telling me the application was successful and showing a tournament ladder. "Apparently I'm in J block."

"I am, too," Musketeer X said, raising her arms over her head and stretching. "What side?"

"Left."

"I'm on the right." Her eyes gleamed. "We get to meet up in the finals. If you make it that far, that is. Good."

I raised an eyebrow. "Why would that be any better than fighting earlier?"

She gestured for me to follow as she started walking out of the Governor's Office. "Well, the thing about the BoB prelims is that both the winner and the runner-up get entered into the tournament itself. The finals is more just a chance for the two to show off." She grinned and tossed her hair. "I'm going to make it to the finals. I just wonder if you will."

"Don't underestimate me," I said calmly. "I may just surprise you."

"We'll see, Rythin," she said with a laugh. "Don't let me down."

My usual small grin widened into a smirk, and I chuckled. "Just watch me."

* * *

 **In my mind, Ziria's theme song is Oi Oi from the Haruhi Suzumiya soundtrack. Also, this is now Nightblade canon that Ziria and the Steel Hearts are really the SOS Brigade and company in a world where Haruhi is sufficiently distracted by the wonders of VRMMO games to really warp reality too much. Try to guess who Koron and Eryin represent! And if you want, the others – there's Greg the male Gnome fighter, Asami the female Undine fighter, and Yin the female Undine mage.**

 **As for GGO, Rythin might be a little bit overconfident right now, but who can blame him? He doesn't really know how the game works at the moment. Plus he's one of the better players in ALO, so he's more or less stopped having a challenge. Plus, the confidence has become another layer of protection for his lack of ego - he brags while knowing that it's a lie.**

 **Why yes, Rythin is a rather unreliable narrator, why do you ask?**

 **Many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.**


	3. Untouchable!

**For shame, readers, only one person tried to guess the Brigade? Here's a hint: Mikuru isn't very creative. ...Neither is Kazuto, for that matter.**

 **Chapter 3: Untouchable!**

* * *

 **December 13** **th** **, 2025**

I followed Musketeer X through the grimy and dirty streets, doing my best to follow her while memorizing the path we took. There were just so many twists and turns, though, that I could barely keep up with my guide and much less the path we took. It didn't help that there were several players that tried to hit on Musketeer X, only to fall back when they saw me following her close behind.

"So, Rythin," Musketeer X said as we walked, "what do you think of GGO so far?"

"Hm?" I wasn't really paying much attention, but shook my head when she snapped her fingers in my face. "Sorry, did you say something?"

"You should pay more attention when a beautiful woman is talking to you," Musketeer X said with a smile and a stretch that deliberately flaunted her assets. "Why, it's almost enough to make me cry."

I smiled slightly. "I thought we agreed that I wasn't hitting on you, what with your boyfriend and my girlfriend." Musketeer X laughed, and I glanced at her. "What did you ask, though?"

"I asked what you thought of GGO so far," she repeated, still giggling slightly. "Compared to your high fantasy games."

I shrugged dismissively. "It's different," I said. "I haven't gotten into any combat yet, though, so I can't really make a decision." I chuckled. "After all, isn't that the main draw of this game? The shooting?"

Musketeer X smiled. "Bingo. It's why I play, anyway. The money's nice, but I'm more interested in the PvP."

"Oh?" Interesting. Is she like me? "Why's that?" It would be remarkably coincidental to run into someone that was, well, as interested in killing as I was, especially if that person was showing me around.

"It's a challenge," she said finally, staring off at one of the floating signs advertising what I assumed to be some sort of mascot for the game. "Besides, I like how it gets people closer together. Have you noticed that? That after you fight someone, you're usually closer friends." Or, not. Seems she likes to get close to people that she fights. Not that I could claim she was wrong, really - I usually ended up chatting cordially with people I'd been hired to kill in ALO - but that just wasn't why I fought. Well, at least, she's probably not Death Gun; I couldn't exactly rule her out because of her gender, since voice modulators were very common, but her outlook on fighting just didn't match up with the killer. "Plus, it's fun." ...Or, maybe not. Death Gun could just be an insane killer killing for fun and choosing high-profile targets for the notoriety. Maybe I shouldn't discount her that quickly...

"I can agree to that," I said absently, coming out of my thoughts and back to the real - heh - world. "Well, I'll reserve judgment for when I actually fight. Who knows? Maybe this game will surprise me." I hadn't really gotten that much from my research on the game; the players online really weren't talking too much about how to play the game, which made sense only once I realized they were trying to make sure they'd come out on top. Especially since the last person offering 'friendly advice' ended up fucking over everyone that listened to him and getting himself killed in the process. Either way, the actual combat was more or less a mystery to me, so I was excited to learn the game's secrets.

The marketplace Musketeer X led me to was rather ostentatious; though, if I had access to floating holograms and fluorescent lighting, I suppose I'd use it liberally as well since the rest of the place was more or less a dull, uniform gray. The word 'Market' flashed in big bold block letters, each letter blinking on and off one at a time until the entire word had been spelled out. At that point, the word itself blinked a few times before the entire sequence looped again. "I don't know, X," I mused. "I'm just not getting that marketplace vibe from here. Are you sure this is the place?"

"Don't be a smartass. We don't have that much time left," Musketeer X scolded me.

"I'm just not getting that market vibe," I told her as we entered. "Maybe something like a bar, or maybe a hotel. Thoughts?"

Musketeer X rolled her eyes. "I think you should figure out how to make money fast," she said. "A thousand credits is barely enough for a used gun, let alone anything that's going to help you survive in the BoB." I would have questioned why she wanted me to survive, but then I remembered that she had mentioned - multiple times, in fact, so it was strange that I had briefly forgotten - that she wanted to go up against me.

I shrugged. "Okay, then. How do I make money fast?" I grinned sharply. "Gonna lend me some?"

"Hah, no," Musketeer X laughed. "Like I said earlier, gambling is the best way to make money." She gestured at a sign hanging from the ceiling with her head; the sign had a man with a cowboy hat giving me a thumbs up, and read 'Let's Challenge'. The goatee and curly mustache didn't exactly thrill me, and the wink was just the icing on the cake. "This way." Of course, I say hanging, but it was just another hologram. It was... Oh, Musketeer X is walking away. I should probably follow her.

As we entered the adjoining room, we were greeted by a massive crush of people, all jostling each other and shouting. There was a line of about six to ten people at any given moment. I blanched as I realized I'd have to deal with this many people, all at once. "What the hell is going on?" I asked Musketeer X; I had to lean over and speak really close to her ear, because the noise level was absolutely atrocious. I could barely hear myself think.

"I don't know," she replied. "Usually, this place isn't so packed." We picked our way through the crowd of people before stopping along a wall. I looked around; the main attraction was a scene almost out of an old western movie. A lone animatronic gunman stood at the end of a long corridor, the corridor fenced in on both sides by an uneven wooden fence. Behind the gunman was a brick building that I assumed was the bank, thanks to the large counter on the top of the building. A large sign proclaimed that the attraction was named Untouchable. As I watched, someone stepped up to the gates at the far end of the corridor, and the players quieted down slightly. A bell rang and the gates swung open; the player dashed a good distance, the gunman taunting him. Then, the player froze as the shooter pointed its gun at him; he contorted his body in a weird way, and I frowned. The gunman fired three times, and each bullet...sailed right past the player, missing him completely.

"How'd he do that?"

"Do what, dodge the bullets?" I nodded, and Musketeer X pointed at the gunman, making a finger gun and peering down her arm as if through the gun's scope. "When someone aims a gun, the target sees a little red line that marks out where the bullet is going to hit. It's the defensive assist..." She kept talking, but I had already started to tune her out. A little red line that showed the path of the attack? That sounded remarkably familiar. Extremely so.

Slowly, I grinned, my eyes gleaming with a fey light. "So the defending player sees a red line tracing the path of the attack just before the attack itself?" Musketeer X stopped talking and nodded, watching me curiously. I started to laugh. "Oh, wow, this is going to be amazing!" I clapped once in joy, absolutely thrilled by the revelation. So this was a game world where _everyone_ had Future Step? A little part of me was sad that I wasn't a special little snowflake anymore, but the rest of me was ganging up on that other part of me and beating it into submission. "So good!"

I pushed my way through the crowd and joined the end of the line, watching as each person tried and failed in quick succession. The number at the counter increased by five hundred every time someone entered the gate, so I assumed that was the cost for entering. When I won, it would be increasing my credits by over one hundred and fifty thousand credits; no small amount to scoff at, I just hoped it would be enough. I didn't exactly pay that much attention to the prices. Eventually, it was my turn at the gates, and I placed my hand on the little panel; it beeped, notifying me that my payment of 500 credits had been accepted. Nodding with a smile, I waited for the gates to swing open and casually strolled through. "Hey, chicken!" the gunman shouted, twirling its gun. "C'mon!" As I approached, the red lines appeared a split second after my instincts warned me, but I didn't try to dodge. Instead, I deliberately shifted into the path of one bullet so that it would impact straight on my forehead. When the gunman fired, the bullet struck straight in the center of my skull, and my head snapped back with the impact.

"Boo!" someone shouted as I exited the lane only to rejoin the end of the line. "Were you even trying to dodge, idiot?" I just ignored them, glancing at Musketeer X. She had one eyebrow raised, and I just gave her a small wave in return. It wasn't like the 500 spent was leaving me, after all; it just went into the jackpot I would get at the end of my second attempt. As expected, the people in front of me didn't get very far, though some that had taken another attempt like me made it further than they had before.

Soon enough, it was my turn at bat again, and I pressed my palm against the panel, feeling my heart start to race. If I lost this, I would... no, I couldn't think about that. I had to win no matter what the cost. "Hey, you! Try dodging this time!" that same guy called out.

I didn't know where he was in the crowd, but he was to my left, so I just turned and cracked my knuckles as the three second timer appeared in front of me and started counting down. "Sure thing." It rang, and I dashed forward as fast as I could go, instantly clearing ground with my long stride.

"I'll kill ya!" the gunman shouted, raising his gun; one by one, the red lines streaked toward me. Before the lines themselves even touched me, I was already moving - the first one was too far to the left for me to bother with, but the second looked like it was going to take me in the shoulder. So I hit the ground and slid, one leg tucked underneath me - I just had to lean back a little bit to dodge the third shot. Three shots rang out, and three shots whistled by me; as soon as the red lines disappeared, I pushed with the leg that was underneath me and continued forward without losing any speed. "You loser!" More bullet lines started to approach me, and I spun to the side; the first line shot past me, but now I was trapped against the right side of the corridor, and the second and third line were going to take me in the stomach and knee respectively. This was like a dance, so I just shifted to the side before tucking into a roll, coming out of it with a surge once I heard the three shots in quick succession. The bangs and the whistling of the bullets seemed almost surreal; I'd gotten used to meaty explosions and sword slashes, not these little pops and tiny pieces of metals.

"Die, ya varmint!" As I refocused on my target, I realized the gunman had already reloaded the gun and was about to fire again. I twisted left and right, shifting my body just enough to avoid the shots, the air rippling by my face. Other players might need to actually get away from the bullet, but I've had more experience with Future Step than they have; I knew almost through instinct just how far I needed to go to avoid the attack. "I'll blast ya ta hell!" The gunman reloaded insanely quickly, and I was forced to keep dodging without a pause or break. I doubted many players would be able to dodge that many, and... Oh, fuck me! All six bullets were being fired at the same time? That's... You know what? Fuck this game. I growled and jumped to the side, pressing my foot against the uneven fence and using as a springboard. I soared over the six bullet spread before landing just a few steps away from the gunman.

"Fuck you, asshole," I growled. I could cover the ground between me and it before the gunman could reload, even with its fast loading speed. Then, the gunman grinned, and my eyes widened; heeding my instincts, I jumped into the air, leaping toward the bastard with as strong a lunge as I could manage. My instincts were once again spot on; the gunman pointed the gun at where I used to be, and the muzzle glowed a bright color as six lines appeared and then almost instantly disappeared, a laser striking with pinpoint accuracy. If I hadn't moved before he started the attack, I'd have been shot for certain. As it was, though, I landed right in front of the startled gunman and slammed my palm into its chest. "Fuck. You." The gathered players were silent for a bit, until I turned around and smirked madly, my head tilted back slightly to give them the impression I was looking down on them. "There. I tried dodging that time."

Behind me, the gunman wailed, "No!" and I turned to watch the window of the bank open and gold coins begin to pour out. I grinned as a screen appeared in front of me, informing me that I had won the total jackpot of upwards of 150,000 credits. Very nice; I should be able to afford plenty of equipment with this.

I exited the corridor and realized about a second too late that there was a very pushy crowd of people trying to get to me. A lot were shouting, asking how I did it, while some were adamantly insisting I had cheated somehow and demanded I give everyone back their money. Eventually, I got tired of listening to these people. "I'll answer one question!" I shouted. "Just one."

The milling players muttered to each other, before one brave soul called out, "The girl that beat this thing earlier said we just had to predict the prediction. How'd you beat it?"

I frowned. "Describe this girl." I received a vague description from the other players, since most of it had been second-hand; small, pretty girl with long black hair. Yeah, that's Kirito, all right. "I didn't do anything special, just dodged the bullet lines." I shrugged helplessly; most of how I dodged things was just practice. I glanced over the crowd to see Musketeer X lounging at the exit, and I nodded to her. She nodded in reply and slipped out. I pushed my way through the crowd, ignoring any other questions shouted at me and doing my best not to lose control of my temper. Most of the players left me alone after it was clear I wasn't going to answer them and went back to trying their best to beat the game.

"That's the busiest I've seen that thing since the game started," Musketeer X said as I joined her in the main market. "So, you've got some skills. I might have underestimated you, Rythin."

I chuckled. "It's really just a matter of practice," I told her. "I've had plenty of it." Two years, give or take.

"How much?"

I smiled grimly. "Enough. More than anyone else." I was a little threatened that everyone here was taking my niche of being able to see the path of attacks, but if none of them could even beat the Untouchable! game I would be just fine.

"Question," she asked, looking at me with a curious little grin on her face.

"Shoot." Er. Maybe I should watch my language with phrases like that; someone might actually take me seriously.

Musketeer X tilted her head, looking at me. "Why'd you get shot that first time? Obviously you could have dodged it."

I chuckled and tapped my forehead where the bullet had hit. "I was testing out how much it would hurt to get shot." On a scale of one to 'fuck me that hurts', it was about a five. Nothing much to worry about - it would sting a little bit, but it felt just like taking a sword thrust. Then I shook my head, remembering the reason I had won the money in the first place. "So, armor and stuff like that. Where is it?"

"Aren't you going to ask about weapons first?" Musketeer X asked with a smile.

I shook my head. "Nah, I'm fine with just my fists and the knife. I don't really need more than that."

Musketeer X frowned and crossed her arms. "Up to you, but I really think you should get a -"

"Look," I told her, "I doubt I have enough money for armor, any other stuff, _and_ a good weapon. I can handle myself if I get close enough, so I just need to be able to get close enough." I crossed my arms, mimicking her position. "So help me out, here. I need something to help me close." Maybe I wasn't exactly playing by the spirit of Gun Gale Online, but I didn't exactly care all that much either. All I was in here for was to make a name for myself to attract Death Gun, so the only thing I needed to do was enter the BoB and do well. So, why try to pick up an entire new skill set?

"Fine," Musketeer X sighed, obviously giving up. "You're being an idiot, but whatever. C'mon, let's get you some armor."

The armor I finally selected followed my typical color preferences; it was a vest, mainly a dark blood red with black highlights, and a gray undershirt with black fingerless gloves. At Musketeer's X urging, I picked up a light muffler to cover my mouth in a dusty area. After finishing the purchase, I slammed my fists together and grinned. "This works. Yes, this will work very well." I noticed Musketeer X walking off, and I followed her because, well, I had nothing better to do, and I was curious. I followed her to the weapons side of the store, where she stopped in front of the various throwable grenades. Some of them seemed strange, but I assumed they all worked like every other grenade I'd seen; pull the pin and throw, then get the hell away so you don't blow yourself up. "Getting some grenades?"

"Yeah," Musketeer X said, tapping the prompt on smoke grenades. "I want to stock up. Never know when they'll come in handy." I studied the various grenades, and hummed in thought, hand on my chin; I still had some money, and they didn't cost all that much... Besides, they might be useful.

I ended up purchasing several flashbangs and smoke grenades, as well as a few regular frag grenades. As I accepted the purchase, a small little garbage can-looking robot flew over, screeching to a halt in front of me. "Welcome, player!" I just stared at it, eyes wide. A screen appeared over the robot's head, and I just continued staring at it, not really sure what the hell I was looking at. Musketeer X nudged me, and I jumped, startled, before placing my palm on the panel. The payment accepted, several different satchels appeared, floating over the robot's head, and I grabbed them. "Thank you for your purchase!" the little robot exclaimed, a little smiling face appearing over its head. "Have a nice day!" It then turned and dashed away, barely avoiding crashing into one of the display stands.

I blinked as it disappeared around the corner. "That... That just happened. Okay, then."

Musketeer X walked off with a wave. "See you later. Registration should be more or less closed, so you should think about getting back to the Governor's Office pretty soon. Later."

"Yeah," I grunted, standing by the displays and thinking. "Later." I had no reason to really worry all that much, right? The game was just using a modified version of Future Step, so I was more or less set. All I had to do was get in close using my dodging and the grenades, and then kill them with the knife or my fists. It was a risky strategy, but high reward; if I could find some way of covering the distance with a slightly safer approach, it might be even more tenable. Though, maybe if I was able to use cover appropriately... Skulk about in the shadows until I was able to surprise them? Maybe. I would have to take a test run during the preliminaries. Probably the first match, since that had the highest likelihood of matching me up against a weak fighter. I wandered outside as I thought, visualizing the movements I'd need to make to slice and cut. My hands and arms twitched occasionally as I unconsciously let the movements bleed through.

As I exited the marketplace, I started making my way toward the Governor's Office, since that's where we had to go, according to Musketeer X. It was about ten minutes until the end of registration, so I could probably make it there in time. Suddenly, two players blew past me, sprinting all-out in the direction was heading. I shifted slightly as they passed, only to blink as I recognized the long black hair of one of them. "Kirito?" I mumbled, focusing on the player on the right. It was most likely Kirito, so I started racing after them. I had almost caught up to them when Kirito grabbed the hand of the blue-haired player he was running with and dragged them off to the side, toward what a sign claimed to be a place where players could rent buggies. "He didn't sign up yet, did he," I muttered with a sigh. Typical. That guy could remember a thousand different sword techniques, enemy spawns, and drop rates, but he couldn't keep track of time or priorities to save his life.

Kirito and the player he was with climbed into one of the buggies - it looked a lot like a motorcycle, so I assumed Kirito would be able to drive it just fine. With a surge of effort, I leapt into the air, landing in the seat right next to the blue-haired player. "Yo," I said calmly as a means to announce my presence. The player - a girl, I realized, taking a quick glance - stifled a shriek, and Kirito turned around with a grin.

"Rythin," he said. "Nice of you to drop by. We're in a rush, though, so we can catch up on the way!" Saying that, he slammed his palm on the panel of the motorcycle, and the engine roared to life. Immediately, he slammed it into gear and took off, speeding onto the freeway and zigzagging through traffic, the girl screaming in shock. "Better hang on!" he shouted; I assumed it was targeted towards the girl, who leaned forward and wrapped her arms around him. I swear, anything female that moves.

"Wait a sec," the girl shouted over the roar of the engine. "These are supposed to be ridiculously hard to drive! I don't know anyone who can handle one, so how come you can?"

"Oh, well," Kirito said, looking back sheepishly, "I used to play a lot of racing games back in the day."

"Eyes front," I snapped as a truck shifted into our lane. He immediately swerved to the right, speeding past the truck almost effortlessly. The girl buried her face in his back with a small scream.

"Are you okay?" Kirito asked her, looking back. I considered asking him to maybe _keep his eyes on the godsdamn road_ but it probably wouldn't do any good.

With a laugh, the girl sat back, beaming. "Yeah, I'm fine. This is great!" she shouted, brushing a bit of hair out of her face. Most of it was held back by two barrettes, but a little bit still fluttered in the wind. She leaned forward with a grin. "Go on, punch it. The faster the better!"

Kirito grinned. "Okay!" Effortlessly, he shifted gears and revved the engine, speeding up and blowing through traffic. Being able to literally ride the center line was a huge plus, since it let us ignore most if not all of the other passengers on the road.

"So, hey," I shouted, "I heard you impressed the locals today at that arcade game."

"Yeah," he shouted back. "Did you try it out?" He glanced back, and I gave him a grin and a thumbs up. He should have known better; once I heard he had successfully embarrassed the entire GGO population, I had to do the same.

The girl looked over at me. "Are you her boyf- friend? The one she converted with?" I opened my mouth to reply, but was briefly shocked into silence by the gender pronoun the girl had used. And the fact that she just called me Kirito's boyfriend. So she seemed to think Kirito was a girl, huh? He might be keeping it quiet for a reason, so I won't say anything. Either way, it was bound to have a hilarious outcome, so I just nodded. "I'm Sinon. It's nice to meet you."

"Likewise," I said politely. Kirito seemed to like her, so might as well play nice; my friend glanced at me with a smile, and I just stuck my tongue out at him. I could be nice, especially when on a highway riding on a speeding motorcycle with no doors to prevent me from being shoved out of said motorcycle. "Thank you for looking after my friend. We were looking for the sign-ups for the BoB, and we split up to save time."

Sinon smiled. "I guess you already got your equipment, though. Did you pay extra money for more credits?"

I shook my head. "Nah, I won it from the Untouchable! game. It was only a hundred-fifty thousand credits because someone," - I said, glaring at Kirito while he just grinned and focused on driving - "beat me to the bigger jackpot, but it was enough for the armor and other stuff."

Sinon's eyes widened. "Oh, you beat the game, too? I've never seen someone move that fast before. She even dodged the lasers with no warning!"

"Hey, Rythin," Kirito called back. "Is that what you see? The red lines and everything?"

I laughed. "Close. The world isn't greyed out, but that's about the only difference."

"I told you, everyone has the bullet prediction lines," Sinon told Kirito. "Your friend wouldn't be any different." She didn't realize that Kirito was referring to ALO, but then again she probably wouldn't have any idea I was the sole owner of the Future Step skill in that game. Most people didn't even know it existed. Though apparently it was in the Seed's code – how had I even missed that, anyway? I thought I had gone over that with a fine-toothed comb.

"It wasn't that hard to beat," I told her. "My reflexes might not be entirely up to par, but I still managed to dodge the bullets."

Sinon shook her head, turning back to stare at the Governor's Office. "I hope we make it in time..."

"Did you not sign up yet?"

"Not yet," Kirito called back. "You?"

I nodded, and then realized he wouldn't be able to see me. "Pretty much right after we split up, I ran into someone and she showed me the way." I seemed to have really strange luck when it came to starting a game, I realized. In Aincrad it was Kirito, in Alfheim Alicia, and now in this world Musketeer X. Well, I wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth.

"Oh yeah?" Kirito asked, obviously amused. "Is that all she showed you?" I rolled my eyes and decided not to dignify that with a response.

...But, I couldn't resist. Being a smartass is remarkably addicting. "Why? Jealous?" Sinon gave me a sharp look, but didn't say anything. Oh, right, she thought Kirito was a girl - and probably thought I was her boyfriend. Or someone Kirito had a crush on. One of the two. Either way, taunting Kirito about being jealous was probably not a good idea. "Nah, nothing happened. I think she wants to fight me in the BoB, though, so I'm going to do my best to survive."

"I'll look forward to meeting you in the tournament," Kirito said with a laugh. Hopefully not until the actual tournament, since if what Musketeer X was true - and I had no real reason to doubt her as of yet - only the finalist and the semifinalist were allowed into the tournament, and it was single elimination. If I went up against Kirito, it would probably end in my defeat, and unless I was very lucky the fight wouldn't be in the finals.

About five minutes later, we pulled up to the entrance of the Governor's Office to the screeching of tires. Kirito actually managed a half-decent parking job, though the skidding accidentally threw me against Sinon. I jerked away as quickly as possible, but she didn't seem too offended. A little uncomfortable, yes, but not offended. Which was good. Because she seemed like the type that knew how to use a gun, even if I couldn't see one on her; it was just a sixth sense about people that I had, that I could identify the ones that were dangerous. Kirito, at times, triggered that sense every now and then, especially when he had something to fight for. Sinon, at the moment, had a roiling sense of unease and danger about her, even though she was smiling slightly. I had only noticed it after I bumped into her, so I decided to keep an eye on the girl.

Kirito glance at his watch and frowned. "We have five minutes."

"Come on!" Sinon exclaimed, grabbing Kirito's hand and pulling him along with her as she raced up the steps toward the entrance.

"Just gonna leave this bike here, then," I muttered, looking around. "Sure, whatever." I hopped off and made my way leisurely up the steps. After entering, I ambled toward the registration booths, unhurriedly walking toward my friend and Sinon. After a second, they both stepped back from the registration booths, and I tapped Kirito on the shoulder. "Everything go smoothly?"

"Yeah, I'm all done." He turned to Sinon and rubbed the back of his head apologetically. "Thank you so much for all your help today. Sorry for all the trouble."

"No worries," Sinon said with a smile. "That crazy ride on the buggy more than made up for it. Anyway, which block did you end up with for the prelims?"

This was an answer I was very curious about, and I leaned over Kirito's shoulder to read his screen. "F, I guess," he read. "F-37." I heaved a sigh of relief; I wasn't going to be fighting Kirito in the preliminaries, and so I would probably make it through.

"Oh?" Sinon asked. "Really... I'm in F too, number 12. That's kind of a cool coincidence. When do we meet up, though..." She glanced at Kirito's screen and smiled. "Oh, good, we're not going to meet up again during the finals."

"Not sure what you mean," Kirito said with a head tilt. I had to stifle a laugh; that gesture was straight from Asuna's playbook. Was he actually mimicking his girlfriend to convince Sinon? That was... actually brilliant, now that I think about it.

"If a player makes it to the final bracket in the prelims," Sinon said, "it won't matter if they lose. They'll automatically advance to the battle royale. That means we both have a shot at advancing to the battle royale, as long as we make it to the last bracket."

"Oh..." Kirito looked at me. "Rythin, what group are you in?"

"Not to worry," I said, before deciding to play it up as much as possible. I gently lifted his chin with my forefinger and looked deep into his eyes, winking very briefly away from Sinon's vision. Kirito flushed a little bit, and I decided to chalk it up to anger. Or embarrassment. "I've been placed in group J, so we won't have to fight," I purred. Then, pretending I had just realized Sinon was watching, I snatched my hand away hurriedly before sneaking a quick glance at her just in time to see the girl turning a slight pink. "Er..."

"Do you have to do that?" Kirito snapped, and I just rubbed my neck and looked away with a slight grin. "You really aren't helping." I snickered slightly at his exasperated tone.

"But," Sinon said, looking away from Kirito and me while mastering her reaction, "if we do meet in the final bracket of the prelims..." She looked at Kirito, and I could see in her eyes that she was serious. "I'll be playing to win." My instincts flared, and I narrowed my eyes slightly. She was dangerous, but I couldn't sure why. Could she be... Nah. Probably not.

"Oh..." Kirito grinned with his own determination shining through. "I get it. Alright. If we both make it, no holding back." A minute or two later, the display at the center of the Governor's Office announced that the registration for the Bullet of Bullets had ended, and I shared a quick grin with Kirito. We had managed to sign up in time. "I'm impressed," Kirito told me and Sinon. "The Japanese translation on these terminals is pretty good." We passed by a guy in a trenchcoat and sunglasses, and I got the distinct feeling I was being watched by him. Once I realized he was looking at me, my skin started to crawl, and I glanced around me; a lot of people were watching me, in fact. Probably because it looked like I was walking with two girls – the female of our species might be more deadly than the male, but if looks could kill... "The official site was English only." Amusingly enough, Kirito had encountered a bit of trouble, apparently; I hadn't, but then again I had been raised speaking both English and Japanese.

"Well Zaskar, the company that developed and runs the game, is American," Sinon said. "They probably have some Japanese staff to run the Japan server." The question is, is the Japan server located in Japan? Or are we just connecting overseas. It's an entirely irrelevant question, but I was a little bit curious. "Oh, and get this. I don't know if you knew, but GGO operates in an illegal gray zone here, and in the U.S."

"The credit conversion system, right?" I asked. "The legality of allowing players to convert their in-game cash to real world money is a bit, er, fuzzy." It wasn't _technically_ illegal, but it could still kinda be considered a pyramid scheme, in a way. The second output exceeded input, input would need to increase or output decrease. Once that happened, the whole game economy would just collapse and Zaskar would run away to the bank, laughing the whole way.

"You won't find anything on the company's home page except the most basic information," Sinon said. She was right; I'd looked fairly thoroughly. "And as for managing your character information, or accessing your e-money account to convert what you earn... Any and all game-related procedures have to be done in the game."

"It's amazing," Kirito said. "Shady, but amazing." I could agree; a small part of me was a little disappointed that ALO didn't have the same system in play. Of course, so many people played ALO that I'm pretty sure the company would go bankrupt pretty fast, so maybe it was better that GGO was the first experiment.

"It is," Sinon said quietly. "The game's practically independent of the real world..." She looked down, her steps coming to a halt, and I realized something - she was playing this game to escape something. I don't know what she's trying to escape, or if it's successful, but that's her motive for playing. "Maybe that's why the person I am in here and the real me feel like two different people..." As I thought. Escapism, though to be fair I really couldn't judge her. I was who I was in game because of that, in a sense; I was free to be as brutal and violent as I wanted, because I wasn't actually doing anything I could get in trouble for. Plus, I could be a little bit more outgoing here. Kirito looked at Sinon curiously, and she raised her hands. "Sorry, I don't know why I went there." She shifted, clasping her hands behind her back. "We should start heading over to the prelim area now. You ready to go?"

"Sure," Kirito said.

Sinon smiled and pointed at a slightly recessed area in the wall. "That way. It's in the basement." I grimaced slightly as I realized I had to deal with another elevator ride; Kirito was here, though, so I guess it wasn't too big a deal. I just needed to take the back and take a few deep breaths, and I'd be fine. And since Kirito knew I didn't exactly enjoy closed spaces like that, he made sure to keep himself and Sinon near the front of the elevator. After the brief but silent elevator ride, we walked out into a large, kinda dark area. Both Kirito and I stared in amazement at the sheer size of the underground room until we both grew aware of the not-so-friendly stares of every other fighter in the room. Many of them had their guns propped up on their shoulder or slung around their back, and I felt my shoulders tense automatically. Movement close by caught my eye, and my nerves made me snap my attention to it; it was just Sinon, reaching out to touch Kirito's arm. "Something wrong?" the girl asked him, and Kirito jumped, startled.

"No, nothing," he said.

"Good," Sinon said with a smile. "Let's go to the waiting room first. You're going to need privacy to change into your new combat suit." I smiled slightly; this was going to end one of two ways and either way it was going to be _glorious_.

"Right," Kirito said, following her as she started to walk off. I nodded and made a sound of agreement before moving off in my own direction. I kept an eye on Kirito, mainly so I could figure out where he was going to be coming out of; I wanted to grab a changing room close to there.

And, I'll admit it to myself if not anyone else, being alone with these players and their shotguns and assault rifles and whatever else they had was a little intimidating.

There was about twenty-eight minutes left until the start of the first match, and I got changed quickly before leaning against a wall with a good view of where Kirito and Sinon had disappeared to. I folded my arms and settled back, waiting for the inevitable explosion. A shame, really; what I wouldn't give to be a fly on the wall in that room right about now. About two minutes later, I was rewarded for my patience by the sight of a very irritated Sinon stalking out of the waiting room, followed by Kirito who, despite the snazzy new outfit - which was a black coat, since apparently neither of us can ever wear anything different ever - was nursing a very obvious slap mark on his cheek. I snickered as I made my way through the crowd, falling into step behind Kirito. Sinon turned a corner and started walking faster, and with no better idea of what to do Kirito and I followed her. "Stop following me," Sinon snapped.

"But I'm not sure what we're supposed to do after this," Kirito complained as we both sped up to keep up with Sinon. For someone like her, she could sure move quickly, and I realized she had changed as well; it was the same scarf, but a different jacket and different pants.

"Stop following me!" Sinon repeated.

"O-okay, but Rythin and I don't know anyone else here!" Kirito said, and I grinned as I realized he had stopped using the fake female voice.

"Stop following me!"

"But, but I..."

Eventually, Sinon stopped and glared at us; more Kirito than me, fortunately, but I apparently wasn't off scot-free. She took a deep breath, and Kirito winced back; I hunkered down, fully expecting her to start shouting at us in the middle of the crowded lobby. Instead, though, she just exhaled with a loud sigh before giving up and leading us to a booth in the corner. She sat on one end of the U-shaped booth, and Kirito and I sat on the other. Sinon just folded her arms and fumed quietly. Kirito tried several times to ask her something, but every time he just ended up shrugging his shoulders and looking away. Sinon looked over with a sigh. "I'll explain it, but just the bare minimum, that's it. After that, you and me are enemies." Someone can hold a grudge, though if I had to guess he at least saw her in her underwear, if not more. Despite her obvious hostility, Kirito's sigh of relief was only matched by his beaming smile.

"Thanks," he said. "I appreciate it."

"Yeah, well, just so we're clear," Sinon growled, "this doesn't mean I forgive you. Or your friend."

I chuckled. "I would have said something earlier, but it was far too much fun to wait and see what happened." Sinon glared at me, and my grin just widened. Surprising nobody, Rythin's an asshole, news at eleven.

"You see that clock up there?" she said, gesturing with her chin. "When it hits zero, everyone here will be automatically transferred to a battlefield, along with whoever their first round opponent's gonna be. You with me so far?" Kirito and I nodded, listening intently, and she continued. "The field's a square, each side's a kilometer." So we had a square kilometer of area to move about in? Interesting. "Weather, terrain, and time are all randomly generated." So it could be possible for me to spawn in the night during a blizzard, and then be absolutely fucked. Cool. Gotta love that random number god. Maybe I should go sacrifice a few goats... "Your opponent's placed five hundred meters away from you. Whoever wins the match gets transferred back here. The loser's transferred to the first floor hall. And you don't get penalized for losing a match." I was too busy imagining the situation to worry about a penalty; wherever I spawned, draw a circle with radius five hundred meters. My opponent would spawn somewhere on that perimeter. So, should I go towards the center? I needed to get up close and personal, and that seemed to be the best place to find someone. Or should I get into a corner, so that I cut off seventy-five percent of their attack vectors? Decisions, decisions. "There are sixty-four people in each block, so five wins will take you to the final, where you'll be eligible for the battle royale." She buried her face in her muffler. "That's it, no more questions. I'm done helping you."

"I think I've got the gist of it," Kirito said, "and thanks again." Still, Sinon refused to look at either of us.

Kirito looked at me, and I shrugged. "Tell me, did she give you any advice before she realized you were a guy?" I asked him.

"Just to not equip my weapons until right before the fight," he replied. "But I think you figured that out already."

Oops. "Oh, are we not supposed to do that?"

"Sinon said it would keep people from figuring out a strategy." He looked at me strangely. "But you're not wearing any..." I opened my menu and unequipped the knife; the sheath disappeared from my forearm.

"There. That's taken care of," I muttered, and turned to see him staring at me.

With a sigh, Kirito asked, "Did you even buy any guns?"

"No?" Despite herself, Sinon looked at me at my response. "Kirito, I have two years of experience using this thing's defensive system," I told him, dropping my voice. "It's not like this is going to be hard for me. Besides, I only had 150 thousand credits. I couldn't afford everything else and a gun and ammo, too."

"Where did you even get a knife, anyway?" Kirito demanded.

"Long story. Short version, I ended up kicking a guy in the face and taking his knife," I said easily.

My friend just shook his head. "I worry about you, sometimes."

"I dance a fine line between humorously pragmatic and disturbingly sociopathic every day," I grinned. It's a vague line, but one I danced to the devil's tune. "What did you end up getting?"

"Well, they had this photon sword thing, and..." He trailed off, scratching at his cheek, and I laughed.

"Did you seriously get a sword in the game about guns?"

Kirito glared at me. "Hey, at least I have a gun. Sinon said it was an FN Five-Seven or something like that."

"You better reach the finals," Sinon announced suddenly, and the two of us ceased our bickering to look at her. "'Cause even after everything I taught you today, there's one thing left for you to learn."

"Yeah? What's that?" Kirito asked.

"The taste of the bullet that beats you." At Sinon's declaration, a small part of me shifted into battle mode. I was able to keep the reaction under control, but I had already shifted, my body language going on the defensive – shoulders rolling forward slightly, arms tensing and hand resting on where my dagger was typically sheathed. There was definitely something wrong with this girl, but I didn't know what.

Kirito, on the other hand, smiled slightly. "I'll look forward to it. What about you, though? You think you'll make it to the finals?"

Sinon scoffed. "I'll retire if I get knocked out of the prelims." She looked up, staring straight ahead. "But I won't. Not this time. This time, I'll kill all the strong players." Her lips curled into a cruel smirk, and Kirito inhaled sharply.

I tapped him on the shoulder. "Was she like this earlier?" I murmured. He just shook his head, not taking his eyes off of her, and I sat back to watch Sinon carefully. She was giving off an air of danger, but it was like she was overcompensating to hide something else. I could try to probe, but at this point there was no way she would even let me close; I doubted I could get her to reveal what she was hiding, especially not now.

"Since this is the last time we're going to be chatting like this, I should formally introduce myself," Sinon said before swiping open her menu and rotating the screen. "There it is; the name of the person that's going to beat you." Sinon, female. Arms seemed to be a pistol and some sort of gun with a scope. A rifle, maybe? Or maybe a sniper. Interesting.

"Okay," Kirito said, extending his hand. "I'm Kirito." Sinon just glared at him, and he laughed uneasily.

"Rythin," I said, swiping open my own screen and sending it to her. She gave it a cursory glance before snorting. "I'll look forward to seeing you in the battle royale."

Someone approached our table, and I glanced at him; a guy, maybe a little taller than me, with silver hair pulled back into a ponytail. Nothing as effeminate as Kirito, though to be fair that was a hard line to beat, and I grinned slightly at the thought. "Hey," he said to Sinon. Evidently he knows her from somewhere, probably partners in the game every now and then. "About time you showed up." Slender, wearing just a breastplate. Probably an AGI character, though I wasn't sure how the stat development affected the character itself. "I couldn't find you anywhere, and I was worried you weren't going to make it."

"Sorry about that, Spiegel," Sinon said, uncrossing her legs. She seemed to be a little bit more comfortable around him, though it was more of the 'common courtesy, keep him at a distance' kind of comfortable. "I totally lost track of time, thanks to an unexpected chore." I nudged Kirito, telling him 'Hey, you're a chore' with my eyes and a grin, and he shoved me back. "Hey, hang on. You said you weren't competing. Did you change your mind?" Sinon shifted over, and Spiegel sat down at the table.

"Well, even though I know how much it bugs you," this Spiegel guy said, rubbing his head sheepishly, "I thought I'd sorta cheer you on from the sidelines." Spiegel was about my height, and looking at the two I finally realized just how short Sinon was. She was shorter than Kirito, come to think of it, and Kirito was a full head shorter than me. Either way, the over-under on this guy having it bad for our resident blue-haired girl was pretty good. "I already picked out a spot in front of the jumbo screen and everything." He blinked. "Hey, what was that unexpected chore you were talking about?"

"Oh, nothing," Sinon said. Her eyes flattened and she glanced at Kirito with disdain. "I was just giving this person a sort of orientation." She couldn't have been more unenthused about it if she tried. Maybe she was trying.

"That'd be me," Kirito said, and I hid a grin at the way he was using the feminine voice again. "Hi," he said with a small bow. "How's it going?"

Sinon was very obviously unimpressed, but Spiegel seemed to buy it. "Oh, uh, hi, it's nice to meet you." He grinned shyly. "So, uh, are you a f-friend of Sinon's?"

The girl in question glanced at Spiegel. "Hate to break it to you, but she's a dude." Spiegel's eyes widened comically as he blanched, and I laughed, clapping my hands in amusement. That would never get old.

"Yeah," Kirito laughed. "My name's Kirito, and I'm a dude." I felt my faith in humanity - or what passed for it in my cold blackened heart - bleed away just a tiny bit more as I realized this was how he had to introduce himself from now on.

Spiegel stuttered for a bit. "A-a guy?" he managed to say finally. His head suddenly whipped back and forth between Sinon and Kirito. "Th-then, does that mean he's a... a... that you're..."

Kirito laughed. "Not even. Hey, Sinon, thanks for showing me a good time." Maybe I was a bad influence on him. I don't remember him being this bad earlier, though to be fair I was basing this off of our interactions in the death game. Still, though, I was proud; they grow up so fast. "It was a great first date."

This time, both Spiegel and Sinon's eyes widened as they both realized what Kirito was saying. "The hell are you saying?" Sinon exclaimed. Spiegel just seemed frozen stiff, making small little choking sounds. Bets are closed, this guy has it bad for Sinon. Any winners, please bring your tickets to the booth and redeem them for your winnings. "It wasn't a good time, and it definitely wasn't a date! It was a mistake, so forget my name and forget we ever met!"

"Oh, c'mon," Kirito said, waving his hand at her. "Don't be so heartless."

"Heartless?! I don't even know you!"

Time to throw some fuel on the fire. "But you seemed to be enjoying it when you were pressed up against his back earlier," I said, staring off into the distance. "What did you say again? 'That ride on the buggy more than made up for being late' or something like that?" Spiegel was just going further and further into shock. Maybe I could make him forget how to breathe.

"And we spent all day together, picking out my gear," Kirito said. He sounded remarkably hurt for someone who was just messing with the girl.

"Yeah, but only because you li-"

However Sinon was going to finish that sentence, she was interrupted by a very bright flash of light from the prism in the center of the room. "Thank you for your patience, players," the crystal announced in the typical female announcer voice. "I hope you're ready, because the third Bullet of Bullets preliminary tournament is about to begin! When the countdown clock reaches zero, all competing players will be automatically transported to their respective first round field maps. Good luck to you all."

I sighed slowly and got ready to fight; sure, teasing Sinon was fun and all, but I needed to shift gears to my battle state. Several players fired off their guns as the entire room cheered, and the popping sounds put me on edge. Was one of these people Death Gun? Sinon stood up, glaring at Kirito, and pointed at him. "You better make it to the finals, because I'm looking forward to blowing your head off. And you!" she said, pointing at me. I blinked at her, pointing a finger at myself as if saying 'Who, me?' "I'm going to put a bullet through that smug grin of yours." Hey, she picked up on the smug grin. Cool.

Kirito stood up, grinning confidently. "I accept the invitation, but don't keep me waiting too long."

I cracked my neck, stretching. "Hey, Kirito, have some fun. Get used to that sword of yours, because I have a feeling we're going to need it later."

Sinon gasped, obviously offended by our total lack of being intimidated by her. "Why you..." Kirito just walked away, waving. Sinon growled at his back, infuriated, before turning her fiery gaze towards me. I ignored it, however, focusing on the sudden spike of rage from Spiegel. Had we gone a little overboard, teasing Sinon? I don't think so. Sure, she was irritated, but that was a good thing - it gave her a clear goal to fight towards. So why was he so... Oh, right, he had a crush on the girl. I...probably should have thought about that.

Before I could say anything to mollify the guy, though, a sphere of light enveloped me and blocked everything out. When my vision cleared again, I had been transported to a place purely covered in darkness, aside from the golden hexagon I was currently standing on and a timer counting down a second at a time from a minute. Remembering what Kirito had said, I opened my menu and equipped my knife and the grenades; the knife appeared on my arm, and the grenades along the inner pockets of my vest. Musketeer X had assured me that even if a bullet hit me the grenades wouldn't explode until I pulled the pin or a powerful shot hit the grenades. After that, though, they were live. I guess it's a little way of keeping me from getting blown up by my own equipment until I was ready to use it.

Apparently I was going up against a guy named XxGiverxX306, and I was going to fight him on the Desert Ruin stage. I drew up my muffler to cover my nose and mouth, grimacing at the incredibly stupid name. Why couldn't people just choose names that were normal? Then again, maybe my name was the abnormal one, since I had converted the account from SAO. That meant I was using the English alphabet for my name, and so far that was pretty rare. The timer hit zero, and I was teleported again.

The second my vision cleared, I drew the knife and just moved in a direction. It didn't matter which one or where I went, I didn't want to be a standing target. I knew intellectually that my opponent was nowhere nearby, but through long practice I had ingrained that movement. Cover, cover, cover, I need to find some cover... The closest bit of cover was a bit of rock half-covered by the sand, and I immediately scrambled to reach it. Once I was safely in cover, I felt a little bit safer and was able to calm down slightly and take stock of my environment.

It was really bloody sunny - and hot. Okay, good to know. I might be able to see the sunlight gleaming off of the gun, but I won't rely on that. I looked for the edge of the world, and saw a hexagon-shaped partially translucent barrier to my south. If I could see it, I was closer than five hundred meters, so I was safe from that direction. That left west, east, and north... I could see the barrier flickering in the distance to my east, so I needed to head northwest for my best chance to catch my opponent. I started moving, going through the desert, and grimaced. The sand had terrible traction, and that was bad; if I got caught out on the sand, I wouldn't be able to dodge. So, get somewhere there isn't sand. Easy to say, harder to do, me, since I need to find some of those ruins first.

I kept low while scrambling through the hot and shifting sand; if that Giver prick found me while I was out here, I'd be filled with so many holes I'd leak when I drank some water. Like one of those really old cartoons. I grinned when I pictured myself drinking water, only to have several little fountains of water start pouring out of various parts of my body. Then I shook my head, focusing on the task at hand - namely, watching the horizon to make sure I wasn't going to be ambushed.

As I approached what I assumed to be the center of the field, the ruins part of Desert Ruin became a little clearer; the old ruins were exposed more, the sand lower in the center. I grinned as I approached cautiously, not wanting to be surprised - after all, if my opponent had the same idea I did, he'd already be here, waiting for me. Fortunately, however, I didn't see so much as a gun barrel as I made my way through the old buildings, and I decided to start exploring. Each of the crumbling buildings had several floors, with various positions to set up surprise attacks or snipe from. Hm... I could attack from above, assuming I could get the drop on my opponent, or I could set up a surprise attack... No, traps won't work, since none of my grenades were motion-sensitive. A good idea, though. So that means I'll need to get the drop on him somehow. But how? I'd need him to come to my position, and that's not exactly - no, wait. I have smoke grenades, and flashbangs. Those two together might just work.

My lips curled into a feral grin as I refined the plan in my head, running through the various scenarios that could possibly occur. Most of them ended in my success, but it was possible I could be shot out of the air, when I couldn't really dodge all that well; to be fair, though, nobody could really alter their trajectory in the air without some sort of mechanical assistance. The probability of that, though, was fairly low, so I'd be fine. I blinked, suddenly realizing that I was doing my best to plan how to ambush a gunman and then murder him without being shot in the process. Situation normal: all fucked up. At least I'll hopefully be better at murdering with a knife than Sugou was. Thinking about it, though, it's a little disturbing that I'm calmly planning murder. Not unexpected, just disturbing.

Right, time to start moving. First, I pulled out one of my flashbangs and tossed it into the air as high as possible, followed by a smoke grenade at the ground. Hopefully, even if he wasn't nearby he'd see or hear the flashbang and come take a look; even if he knew it was a trap, he wouldn't have much of a chance to do anything about it. He'd have to come look, because this is where I was. The tactic might not be very smart if it weren't one-on-one, but that wasn't the case. The smoke grenade was pretty much solely to tell him where I was, so that he approached the ambush site on his own. I kept glancing out of hiding every ten seconds or so, though I mostly tried to listen.

 _crunch_

Was that? I held my breath and froze, listening as intently as possible.

 _Crunch._

Excellent. I had been rewarded for my patience by the sound of footsteps in the sand. It was quiet, so I wasn't entirely sure, but when I leaned over and looked, I saw a man in a stupid-looking mask and red vest clambering around through the sand. His main weapon seemed to be... Actually, I don't know anything about guns so I'm just going to hope it's not some sort of death ray. It wasn't a pistol. Without it actually firing, that's about all I know.

As he stepped through the smoke, coughing slightly and waving at the smoke, I tossed my second flashbang. It landed right in front of him, and I heard him grunt just before it exploded. In the confusion, I leapt out of the window, knife in my hand; as I fell toward the ground, I tried to figure out where to attack. He was stumbling and clutching at his eyes, his gun by his side, which gave me a few extra precious seconds. Body armor, vest... Fuck it, the neck's worked before, it'll work now. I landed and immediately scrambled to bring my knife around to bear; with a hiss of rage, I jammed the blade into his neck and tore open where his jugular would be. I knew that even though I had just slit open his lifeblood, it wouldn't kill him in this game - so I continued the attack, grabbing his gun and keeping him from getting it with one hand while I slammed my elbow into the back of his skull with the other. I was doing damage, but not quickly enough; as his health slowly drained and we struggled, he was gradually overpowering me, the barrel of the gun slowly inching toward my heart, and we both knew it.

No, no, no no no no no! Swearing under my breath, I tried another stabbing attack, this time towards his eyes; he flinched away automatically, and I released his gun before grabbing a random grenade and tossing it at his feet. Both of us realized a second after I threw it that it was a frag grenade, and I immediately whirled and did my best to bolt from him. I felt a few bullets hit my back, and I stumbled before just curling up into a ball and jumping. Just before the grenade exploded, I wished it had been one of the concussion grenades instead.

The explosion threw me forward, and I did my best to keep my head, arms, and legs inside the scant cover my back provided. I felt several pieces of the grenade casing slam into my back, and I rocked forward with each hit; the only thing I could do was watch as my health dropped with every impact. As the sand and dust from the explosion started to settle, I uncurled and tried to reach cover - only to be halted by a congratulations screen before I could move very far. As I read my name in the victor's position, I couldn't help but laugh helplessly. Through sheer dumb luck I managed to beat my opponent. If it hadn't been a frag, I'd probably have lost. My practice with Future Step might be a godsend here, but I was still physically weaker than many players. So don't get into a clinch, stupid.

I sheathed my knife and stared up at the sky, laughing almost hysterically. It had been a fun fight, though, and I understood why some people made this their career. The orb of light enveloped me, and I let myself be taken away. When it cleared, I was in the same position I had been in before; legs stretched out under the table where Sinon and Spiegel had been. Groaning in pain from the slight twinging in my back, I cracked my neck and watched the screens in the center of the room. I watched curiously as several other players fought; some used shotguns, some used assault rifles, and some used snipers. I didn't see Kirito, Sinon, or Musketeer X, so I began to lose interest. I had no way of knowing which one of them was my next opponent, so there was no real reason to watch the fights. I wonder if any of the people I know finished... Come to think of it, that probably should have been my first priority.

I scanned around the room to see if any of the people I knew had finished, easily picking Spiegel out of the crowd as he stood in the center of the room, staring at the screens. Then, I stiffened as I recognized my friend just beside and a bit behind Spiegel, facing a man I didn't recognize, a man in a dark trenchcoat. It was like I could smell the blood on him. My jaw clenched and I stood up, my fist clenching and unclenching rhythmically; we had found him. Or he had found us. Whatever.

Death Gun was right in front of me.

* * *

 **Right, so, gunfights – I don't know anything about guns, and I don't really think I'll be able to learn enough to write accurately about them, so fuck it Rythin's sticking with a knife. I mean it's totally in character for him to do so, so whatever.**

 **He will, however, be using grenades because fuck being at a disadvantage, right?**

 **Many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.**

* * *

 **Omake: Sounding Familiar (1)**

"Go on, punch it," Sinon said, laughing gleefully. "The faster the better." The black-haired girl took her at her word, revving the engine of the bike and accelerating. Then Sinon noticed the boy that had jumped into the seat beside her staring at her curiously. "Uh… can I help you?"

"…Does the name Yin ring any bells?" he asked.

Sinon blinked. "Um… there's a few TV shows that have a character with that name," she offered.

The boy frowned. "This is going to sound insane, but then again I am. Are you an alien?"

"…No?" The boy nodded, as if the answer satisfied him. _He's kinda weird. But she seems to know him, so…_ "Are you her boyf- friend? The one she converted with?"

The boy hesitated slightly before answering. "Yeah. Nice to meet you."

 **Ten internet points to anyone who gets the joke. (Note that internet points are inherently worthless because they're on the internet, just like this story.)**


	4. Preliminaries

**Chapter 4: Preliminaries**

* * *

 **December 13** **th** **, 2025**

Death Gun was right there.

I grasped at my knife, almost drawing it out of the sheath, before catching myself and freezing in place. It wasn't necessarily Death Gun, right? It didn't have to be him, right? But Kirito's body language was freaking me out - he was wide-eyed and stiff, staring at the man without blinking. He seemed to be shuddering, without really seeing what was happening. Growling under my breath, I started to storm over to where they were speaking. Suddenly, the man swept his hand down and moved off into the side, striding past Kirito and into a doorway before disappearing into darkness. Fuck... Fuck, I don't know what just happened but it was probably bad because Kirito looks terrible. If he comes near my friend again I don't care how impossible it is I _will_ find a way to kill him in the town, damn the consequences.

I approached Kirito as he staggered up towards the couch and waved a hand in front of his unseeing eyes. "Hey, Kirito, buddy, you doing okay?" He didn't respond, just collapsing into the booth and burying his face in his hands. "Kirito?" My friend was whimpering, breathing incredibly heavily, and I frowned. What had he said to you? Gods. I was terrible with emotional trauma; I wish Yui were here, she'd know what to say to Kirito. Instead, I did the only thing I could do; pat my friend on the shoulder and start going after the bastard that did this to him. Let's see how he likes a fucking _knife in his throat_.

I strode through the same doorway I had seen Death Gun disappear into, and I realized I was in an empty hallway. I had no idea what it was for, and I didn't intend to find out. I took a few steps in, just enough to ensure that the other side was empty, and then turned to head back to Kirito. The only problem was, there was now someone blocking the entrance; I leaped back, dropping into a fighting stance automatically. It was the same trenchcoat - well, similar - as the guy that had messed with Kirito. Wanted the hat trick, pal? Too bad. You're dealing with me now, and I'm nowhere near as nice as Kirito. "Who are you?" I asked the man.

His mask spat out a burst of gas, and I frowned as I realized his entire face was hidden by the mask. The red eyes didn't really lend themselves to painting him as a trustworthy figure. "You know who I am," he replied.

Cloak, mask, deep voice... "Death Gun," I snarled. "It's you." I straightened cautiously, but only a little bit. "Here to kill me?"

"Are you the real one?"

I blinked. "What?" No, Rythin, don't get distracted. Your job is to figure out how he's killing players, and that's it. Don't try to play the hero, don't try to stop him from doing it, just figure out his method of operation and get the hell out of Dodge. Preferably after stabbing him. "The real one of what?"

"Your name. Your skill." Death Gun pointed at me with a bandaged hand. "Are you the real Rythin? There is a Kirito here as well."

He knows us. My eyes widened slightly as his knowledge of us became clear. He knows exactly who we are, who we were. The Tactician and the Black Swordsman. "Who's Kirito?" Let's play dumb for now, see how things play out. "And what do you mean, my name? I just thought it sounded cool." Not technically a lie, since that's partly why I chose it in the first place...

Death Gun's mask shot out another burst of gas. "The Kirito said the same thing." The bastard sounded almost amused. C'mon, show me how you do it, how you kill people.

Well, if he's not going to do it willingly, let's put my particular talents to the test. "They say you're a nutcase," I taunted. "That your little gimmick is just a coincidence. Hell, most people don't even know you exist." Give me enough time with someone and sooner or later I'll piss them off somehow. I'm pretty sure I've managed to irritate literally everyone I've spent enough time with - the only one that doesn't immediately spring to mind is Yui, and that's not fair because I'm pretty sure that little sweetheart can't get mad. "Tell me, is it that you get a boner from killing, or is it just that you're jealous of everyone else?" Damn him, what's his weak spot?

Death Gun was silent for a bit, and I wondered if I'd actually managed to hit his buttons hard enough. Go on, I dare you to try to kill me while I'm in a hospital. Even if something does go wrong, they'll be able to get me back on my feet in seconds. That...is how hospitals work, right? Honestly, I've been more or less unconscious every time I've needed emergency medical assistance, so I can't really say. Eventually, after the silence was starting to unnerve me, Death Gun spread his arms, the cloak flaring behind him. No weapons were evident, but that wasn't my main focus - no, my eyes were riveted to the small black and white marking on his right arm, peeking through the bandages. It was a pair of eyes and what looked like the top pair of lips, and I recognized it. I recognized it all too well.

Death Gun was a member of Laughing Coffin, the SAO slaughtering guild. The red players, the player killers, the people following PoH and his twisted utopia of the strong preying on the weak.

Anger filled me; I had killed four of their members, and they were still here? I had masterminded an attempt to neutralize their presence in SAO, and they were still here? What did it fucking take to crush these cockroaches once and for all? Fighting the urge to throttle the piece of scum in front of me, I tried to keep my physical reaction as subtle as possible. I couldn't kill it entirely, I knew, but I could hide it with luck. Death Gun's red eyes burned into my own, and I met his gaze fearlessly. "It doesn't matter what you say or do," he stated solemnly. Then again, every word that oozed out of his mouth was solemn thanks to the voice changer that was probably hidden inside his mask. "I will kill you whether you're the real Rythin or not."

"Try it, asshole," I growled, my voice rough and deep. He had pissed me off, and I was in no mood to pretend to be nice. "See how far you get before I tear your head off." Death Gun strode past me, and I whirled once it was safe to do so - when he was about two or three steps behind me. "And where the hell..." The corridor was empty. Entirely, absolutely, empty. My lips curled into a snarl and I clenched my fists hard enough that it would have left marks in the real world. Count to ten, calm your heartbeat... After a few deep breaths, I was back in control. The anger was simmering, but I tried to force it to crystallize; the Laughing Coffin's logo flashed in my eyes and I froze the anger, storing it for later. I turned back to go talk to Kirito; he needed my help more than I needed to swear at an empty hallway.

When I returned, Sinon was standing in front of my friend, and he was desperately clinging to her hand. What happened? She seemed bewildered, Kirito seemed desperate, and... and Spiegel seemed jealous. Making my way through the crowd of players that had won their matches, I reached Kirito and Sinon just as the ball of light enveloped Kirito, whisking him away to his second match. With a sigh, I stopped next to Sinon and stared up at the ceiling, stretching. "Is he doing okay?" I asked quietly. She had seemed to be comforting him, but I needed to be sure.

"What happened?" she asked me, sounding bemused. "I get back and he's shaking like a leaf. Don't tell me the fight..."

I shook my head, interrupting her. "He was speaking with someone when I got back, and whatever the conversation was shook him. Did he say anything?"

Sinon shook her head. "No, he just..." At a loss for words, she just waved her hands. I grimaced; I'd been hoping he'd have at least said something to her. I couldn't exactly tell her that Kirito and I had been sent to track down Death Gun - or that when we finally made contact with him he had managed to sucker-punch us this badly. The screen in front of us changed and started displaying a battlefield, and I sucked in air as I recognized the form of my friend standing motionless in a maze.

For the longest time, he just stood there, not moving. Soon enough, his opponent found his position and opened fire with some sort of assault rifle or something; Kirito didn't even try to dodge the bullets, not even flinching until one struck him a glancing blow on the cheek. I snarled slightly under my breath as he finally drew his sword and charged his opponent. "He's fighting mad," I growled. "What the hell happened?" Sinon, standing beside me just shook her head.

The orb of light appeared suddenly and whisked me away. Guess it's time to fight my own battle.

When I opened my eyes again in the main lobby, returning from my second fight - it went well, and I managed to win without being hit - Kirito was nowhere to be seen and Sinon had disappeared as well. Spiegel was watching the screens avidly, so I assumed that Sinon had been pulled away for her own battle. With a sigh, I slumped back into my seat and folded my hands in front of me, thinking. Death Gun had said something to Kirito, or showed something to him, but what? The member of Laughing Coffin had survived the... oh, shit. Shit, shit, shit. Kirito was having flashbacks to the Laughing Coffin raid. He told me he had killed two people that day, but I was having my own breakdown at the time - that's what this was about. I leaned my head back against the seat and groaned, my eyes closed. Where was Yui when I needed her? For that matter, how had we missed a survivor of the Laughing Coffin guild like that? Damn it, if only we had more information I could be done right now. Kirito could be getting the help needed from his daughter instead of suffering through this right now.

I swore loudly, and a few players looked over before a glare directed impartially told them to leave me alone.

My legs were twitching, and I stood up with a surge. I needed to walk around, work my legs so that I didn't have to work my mind. If I just sat there, I'd shut down, running through the same data over and over without finding anything new. Death Gun was a member of Laughing Coffin that survived the purge, but did that make him one of the ones that escaped the attack, or one of the ones that had been captured? I shook my head, laughing bitterly at myself. It didn't make a difference, he's a murderous psychopath either way. And the thought made me laugh again; I didn't really have any room to talk about someone being a murderous psychopath, what with my own issues.

I had made a loop around the main lobby area without noticing when someone grabbed my upper arm with a firm grip. I froze for a heartbeat before instantly turning to strike at my attacker; however, I halted again when I realized it was only Spiegel, staring at me with an intense look in his eyes. "That was stupid," I told him calmly. "Don't do it again."

"Stay away from Sinon," he said just as calmly, and my eyes narrowed. He was incredibly mad, if I was guessing right. Jealous that his friend seemed to be opening up to people? Eh, I'd be jealous too, I guess.

"I have no intentions on your interest," I told him bluntly. "My goal is to survive to the finals of the preliminary tournament and that is all."

He glared at me for a few seconds; he still hadn't let go, and I was preparing to take matters into my own hands when the game took action. The light enveloped me again, and I was transported to my next arena. "Pissant," I growled, shaking myself. "Why is everyone freaking out all of the sudden?" Gah. It's just a pain in the ass. Sometimes I'm glad I don't have to deal with shit like that, and then I realize hey, I freak out essentially constantly. It was only Argo and my friends that kept me remotely sane. So, hey, who am I fighting? Carbuncle? Alright, cool, cool. I slammed my fists together and snarled slightly, growling deep in my throat, before licking my lips. Time to murder.

My arena was a snowy frost-covered wasteland, and I grumbled as I pulled my muffler over my nose and face again, narrowing my eyes against the chilling temperatures. Snow sucked, wind sucked, the cold sucked. I hated the heat, too - I was happiest during spring and fall when the temperatures were moderate. Bleh.

I wandered through the wasteland, searching for my opponent; I couldn't find the bastard in the first minute of searching, and decided to say fuck it. "Snow is better than sand," I growled to myself as I listened to the crunching underfoot. "But ice can go die in a fire. Stupid slippery surfaces." As I wandered, I kept my eyes on the horizon - the area was flat enough that I should be able to see Carbuncle as he approached. Why am I even assuming Carbuncle is a guy, anyway? Just because the majority of players... eh, it's a safe assumption. Until I realize I'm going against a girl with a gigantic rocket launcher, I'm going to assume he's a guy. Then again, Kirito looks like a girl, so maybe not even when I see the player.

A soft clang was different from the crunching of snow I had previously been hearing, and I looked down, almost thinking it was a mine or something. Fortunately, it wasn't an attack; it was just a hatch. Curious, I pulled at the hatch and it creaked open. "Rusty," I noted. "Someone needs to oil these things." Crouching down and leaning over, I peered into the darkness, trying to figure out just what the hatch was. My eyes widened when I realized it was a tunnel stretching off into the distance. "Tunnels? But then that means -" I snapped my head up and whirled around quickly, feeling the danger; red lines were stretched out from the muzzle of a gun that was a very short distance away. "Shitting fuck!" I swore, jumping as far away as possible. The gun barked loudly, and the shotgun shells slammed into the ground where I had been just a split second before.

I looked at my opponent, and grimaced; he was a veritable giant, with a very large shotgun. This was going to be a hit-and-run style fight, I guess. "Stand still!" Carbuncle shouted.

"I thought Carbuncle was supposed to be an adorable little rat thing with a gem in its forehead!" I shouted back at him. "All those video games lied to me!"

He blinked. "What?" Excellent - he was confused. My confusion-fu was just as strong as it had been before. That would give me just a very, very small edge against him; that, plus the natural human reluctance to shoot another human, would probably help. Unless he was like me, or had been broken of that reluctance - but I doubted that. If he was, I wouldn't have been able to dodge his first shot.

With a grunt, I tossed several smoke grenades in the area around me; when they released their contents, I was more or less safe. He could shoot at random, but as long as I stayed low to the ground I'd be safe. And I was low to the ground, doing my best to resemble a lizard; a few shotgun blasts rang out over my head, but I ignored them and crawled towards where the man had been. My knife bit low and hard, cutting him off - literally. He stumbled as his foot stopped existing, and I used the opportunity to roll away, dropping a flashbang where I had been. As expected he fired at the ground - and the flashbang went off. My ears ringing and my balance shot all to hell, I stumbled forward and tried my best to stab him repeatedly before he was able to see again; my only advantage was that I wasn't blind from the flashbang. I must have managed to sever something important, because he howled and fell down, straight on top of me. I roared and kicked, using his momentum against him to fling him away, and he landed heavily on his back. I checked my inventory briefly, and nodded when I saw I had what I needed.

Carbuncle staggered to his feet and pumped his shotgun. "Now you're mine!"

"Bite me!" I shouted back, dodging to the side. The shotgun shells struck the snow where I had been a second before, but I was already moving the second I came out of my roll. Snow crunched under my feet as I leapt and twisted in the air, heeding my instincts and letting the next shotgun blast pass under my back. I dropped to the ground briefly, still circling Carbuncle – he hadn't moved, which was useful for me. Big guy thought I would run, but a predator never runs when his prey is in front of him.

...I'm a bit disturbed. In the sense that the ocean is a bit deep.

I cartwheeled to the side as Carbuncle fired another round at me; one bit of the spread nicked my arm, and I winced, landing awkwardly and sprawling in the snow. Carbuncle laughed nastily as he reloaded his shells quickly, pumping the shotgun and aiming it at me. "You're done!"

"Get fucked," I growled. I jumped up from where I was, passing over his shoulders and landing behind him.

He tried to turn, but I just tugged on the thin and pliable cord of steel I was holding in my hands. "Hrk!" he managed to grunt, dropping his shotgun to bring his hands up to his neck and tug at the gleaming stranglecord that I had wrapped around his neck. "Gggkk…" I put my back to him and wrapped the cord around my hand, using my shoulder for leverage. He choked and coughed, and I struggled to keep the cord taut and murderous. Slowly choking the life out of my victim wasn't my technically preferred method of murder, but it was efficient. As long as I didn't get thrown.

Which was exactly what happened a few seconds later. My luck. Carbuncle had enough strength to force the cord away from his neck just a bit, panting heavily, and then he used his larger form and massive amount of strength to literally fling me away, back the way I had come. He laughed triumphantly, bending down to pick up his shotgun.

He froze when he heard the clicks from all around him.

Choking him hadn't been the only reason I used the steel cord; while I had been dodging around, I had been placing tripwire grenades on the ground, frag grenades with the pin removed. The only thing keeping them from exploding immediately had been the weight of the snow I had placed them under and the cord I was keeping a firm grasp. Each had been connected to the steel cord, and by throwing me, Carbuncle had been playing right into my hands. No less than six grenades all uncovered themselves from the snow as the cord I had wrapped around him dragged them to him; smirking, I let go of the cord and landed carefully, rolling away to keep my back to the explosion and hunched over. A loud explosion ripped through the air.

When I returned to the lobby victorious, Kirito was already on his fourth fight. I approached Sinon, who was watching the fight; she was staring at the screen, arms at her side. I looked up as Kirito charged an enemy, firing his handgun to keep the guy pinned down and... holy shit he was literally deflecting bullets with his sword. But I frowned as I watched him take nicks here and there; he just didn't even care that he was getting shot, he just made sure he survived. He's fighting stupid.

"He's better than this," Sinon said, and I blinked, trying to figure out if I had muttered my observation out loud. Kirito jumped over the player with a flip before landing and slicing out with his beam sword, severing the enemy's weapon and nearly bisecting the man. I frowned as players started muttering to themselves. You bastards were just laughing about it, and now you praise him?

"I can't believe he keeps winning, fighting like that," Spiegel said sullenly. "His next match is in the semifinals." He stood up and turned to Sinon. "Yours is too, so get out there and rock."

Light enveloped me, and I missed whatever else he said and how Sinon reacted. It was time for my own fourth match. According to the system, I'm fighting a guy named Sadus. Not really a huge deal, I guess. Just gotta make sure I kill the bastard before he kills me. I want to talk to Kirito again, and if I don't hurry up and kill this guy I'll miss my window. I was going to be fighting in the Jungle Temple area, so that was nice; my mobility would be back to normal, though I probably wouldn't be able to set up another trap like the one in the first fight. Because that one went _so_ well before. Well, not a problem. Just need to find him and then murder him.

Simple. Plus, it'll let me vent a bit.

When I spawned in the arena, I started moving immediately. Despite the fact that my enemy had to be at least 500 meters away, I didn't want to be caught lying down. I was nowhere near the temple part of the Forest Temple, but it probably offered the best cover, so both of us would be heading there. If I could get there first, I'd be in an advantageous position. "I hate forests," I grumbled as I moved through the thick foliage. "Stupid trees. And stupid bushes." I guess I could use the branches to swing if necessary, but if it came to that I was probably boned. I didn't like being in the air because of the whole not being able to dodge thing.

Despite my distance from the center of the arena at start, I burst through the edge of the foliage in about forty seconds past spawn. Benefits of being able to haul ass, I guess, though I was probably still second to arrive. I had been near a corner on my spawn, so even if I made a beeline straight for the center area I'd have a further distance to go. Sometimes math could be fun, though I should probably be thinking about mathematics when I wasn't about to engage in a firefight. "Focus, Rythin. Gotta find the enemy before he -"

A red line traced through my vision and I lunged to the side out of instinct. A second later, a bullet whistled through the air, striking where my leg would have been had I not moved. I swore floridly. "Looks like I don't have to worry about being ambushed," I hissed. Scrambling to my feet, I managed to roll into cover as another bullet hit the ground where I had been, echoed by the rifle crack. Where the hell is he? Obvious answer, Rythin, he's behind the bullet lines. Whirling out from cover, I dashed in the direction he had shot from last - I hadn't given him enough time to shift location, so he was still there. A bullet line came streaking toward my torso, and I shifted just enough to let the bullet skim by me without touching me in the slightest. My lips curled into a feral grin as I closed in, ghosting past each bullet without being injured.

"Wha-?" Sadus shouted as I lunged toward him, knife at the ready. With a hiss, I slashed at the most dangerous part of my opponent - the part that controlled the weapon. My blade sliced into his wrist and severed it, the gun falling to the side. I laughed madly and used the momentum to slam my right elbow into his jaw, probably stunning him. "Fucker!"

I just kicked him in the gut and dropped a concussion grenade by his prone form before bolting away. Five seconds later, the explosion washed over me, but I was far enough from the source that I was just blown forward instead of actually taking damage. With a grunt, I gathered my feet under me and spun, checking to make sure my opponent was dead; I didn't have to worry, though, because if my guess was right he had been blown against a nearby column hard enough to crack it. A few seconds later, the Congratulations message appeared above my head and I sheathed my knife. "Problem solved."

Sinon was in the middle of her own match when I returned; she seemed to be fighting in a ruined city. Her sniping skills were amazing, and I watched her nail a headshot on a target in a car while he was driving through an intersection. Simply amazing. I was going to congratulate her when she returned, but my own match had just been made and I disappeared for my own semifinal match.

I spawned more or less in the center of the map again, and sighed; that meant I had to wait for my opponent to come to me. I chose my waiting spot and started humming to myself, choosing a song I had enjoyed before. Before long, though, I grew tired and started to sing a song. _Oh won't you tell me, please just tell me, explain how this should work. Well now, who could it be? That lives inside of me._ If anything, I was doing it to disturb the viewers that may or may not be watching. Laughing to myself, I stood up and stretched, trying to crack my back. My instincts warned me, and I ducked down just in time to see several red lines streak over my head, followed by the bullets. Different gun from the second and third persons, though maybe the same as the first guy? He didn't fire at me, so I couldn't really tell.

Tossing a smoke grenade over my head, I scrambled out of cover to circle around. He seemed to know what he was doing, because I couldn't see Keith anywhere in the brief moments of exposure. I'd have to either flush him out or go to him if I wanted to get anywhere - and I chose both. First, though, I need to know where he is. I dashed into a relatively open area and whistled. "Hey, come out and play!" I shouted. Honestly, I give it about a twenty percent chance of success; he might be stupid, I don't know. When the only reply was a veritable hail of bullets from my right, I just laughed in glee. Found you! Er, now I have to dodge the bullets. "Well, fuck me." The spread was fairly bad, but that just made things worse - to dodge, I'd be putting myself in the line of fire of other bullets. Well, they fire at different rates, so I moved. My first step was to slip out of the way of the first bullet, facing to the side to give as little target space as possible. After that, I danced - that's the only way I could describe it, as a dance of death that I had to survive. Several bullets struck my shoulders and side, and I flinched with each impact, stumbling slightly before regaining my feet. The whole time, though, I was pressing forward and forcing myself to press on through the hail of bullets.

He had to reload eventually, and when the bullets stopped I made my move. Grabbing a grenade and hurling it toward where Keith had been making his cover, I sprinted forward and hit the ground sliding. Keith was no idiot; he knew I had been using grenades from earlier. The second my grenade passed over his hiding spot he jumped and flipped over the cover, reloading in midair. He pointed his gun at where he had last seen me - the only problem with that plan, something he must have realized when I was nowhere to be seen. With a shout and a surge, I thrust up with my dagger, managing to pierce his chest armor; my knife was almost ripped from my hands, would have been had I been doing this in real life, but I managed to hold on, and the momentum of me sliding forward and him lunging over me resulted in my knife nearly bisecting him. He hadn't died from the slash, which surprised me, but it meant he was still dangerous; he tried to bring his gun to bear on me again, but I was already moving. "Uh-uh," I said, stomping on his wrist and pulling the gun away. "Not today. I've been shot more than enough already." My health was a little bit low from the fire sustained in the charge, so I didn't want to risk anything. Grabbing the gun from his hand, I brought it to bear and calmly pulled the trigger.

I appeared in the lobby and searched for my friend; neither he nor Sinon were nowhere to be seen, and I realized that meant they were probably fighting each other at that very moment. I turned my attention to the screen, and was pleased to see I had come at the very beginning of the fight. They were fighting on a bridge in the same ruined city; Sinon had a sniping position set up on a bus, hidden fairly well, and Kirito was...

Oh, for fuck's sake. Kirito was just walking forward slowly, not even trying to hide himself. "What are you doing, buddy?" I murmured as I watched him stand there, waiting patiently for Sinon to end his life.

The girl obviously wondered the same thing, but she evidently took it as an insult. "Don't screw with me!" Shouting in rage, she fired a shot at Kirito. It whistled past his head, hitting an overturned truck behind him and causing an explosion. She fired more bullets, putting clip after clip into the air, but none of them hit. Where had that deadly accuracy I had just seen gone? It had disappeared, without a trace. She had lost it entirely. Also, I just realized that we had audio; apparently, they were doing that for the finals. Neat.

Eventually, she scrambled out of the bus she had chosen for her sniper's nest and made her way up to where Kirito was standing. She stopped a small distance away, pointing her rifle at him, and started shouting. "Fight me! C'mon, fight! Or maybe you think I'm not worth the effort!"

"You got it all wrong," Kirito said calmly, and my nostrils flared at the sound of his voice. He just seemed... defeated, somehow. Remembering the lives he had taken had broken him. "All I want is to compete in the final. There's no reason to fight anymore." This from one of the most battle-hungry guys I had ever met? Even in Aincrad, when most players had given up, he still found reasons to fight.

"Then go on and shoot yourself and get it over with," Sinon snapped angrily. "Or would that be a waste of ammo?!" She's got a good knack for insults, though they just didn't have the bite they needed to. She was too angry, I guess. Put too much of her own emotion into it. Kirito didn't react to her barbed words, and she took a step closer. "Or maybe you wanted me to shoot you, 'cause you thought it would even the score between us." Sinon, you've got it all wrong - Kirito doesn't even keep count of things like that. I do, but not him. He doesn't play the game. "To you it's just a game." She was tearing up - oh, gods, this was important to her. Kirito, wake up, please. You're making her cry. "Just one stupid match. That's all it is to you, is that it? A game? Well, just 'cause you feel that way doesn't mean I do!"

Kirito's eyes widened on the screen, and I closed mine. Both of us - we had been blind, hadn't we? We'd just treated this as a romp through another game, doing whatever we wanted to because we were the strong ones in here. How had we missed it? This was her life, for whatever reason. She had created another life in here, just like Kirito and I had in Aincrad and in Alfheim. That was why she was reacting this way, why she wanted to kill the strong players. She needed strength for something. I don't know what, but whatever it is, Kirito is pushing her to the breaking point. Damn. This could get ugly.

Hadn't she said something earlier about what would happen if both Kirito and Sinon made it to the finals? Something about playing to win. "I'm sorry," Kirito said, and I opened my eyes to finally recognize my friend again. He'd snapped out of his own issues when confronted by hers. "What I did was wrong." I felt a momentary pang of regret that I couldn't understand that we had been in the wrong; sometimes I wanted to know how it felt to have morals, ethics, things like that. To be human, and not some monster. But I wasn't human, and nothing could change that; I could pretend, lie to everyone, and I'd still be a monster under the skin and face of a human. I shook my head, forcing away the doubt and centering myself. I still had to be strong for one more match - Kirito would be mad if I didn't give my own final match all I had. Besides, with everything I'd done, it was too late to start feeling guilt. "Sure it's a game, and it's only one match. But still, that's why we have to give it all we've got." He clenched a fist. "It's why we're here. It's how we live, how we keep surviving." He smiled slightly, and I knew he was back to more or less normal. "If anyone should know that, it's me." There was a moment of silence before Kirito looked at Sinon, his gaze hard. "Sinon, give me a chance to make it right with you. Let me give you the fight I promised."

"I swear, if you're messing with me," Sinon growled, before gasping as Kirito calmly reached for the pistol holstered on his hip. She brought her rifle to bear, but didn't fire when Kirito only cycled the chamber, releasing a bullet into the air and catching it.

"Got any bullets left on you, or are you all out?" he asked, holding up his bullet. My eyes widened as I grinned. Was he going to pull the same stunt I had? That's actually kinda fantastic.

"Yeah. I got one."

"Okay," Kirito said. "Then let's have a duel." Oh, yes, he was going to do something similar to my little gamble earlier. Probably not for the same stakes, but that's amazing. I'm pretty sure I didn't tell him about it. "Here's the rules - we stand ten meters apart, you with your rifle and me with my sword. I'll toss this bullet up, and when it hits the ground we start. What do you say?"

Sinon frowned. "Hang on. If we're ten meters away it won't give you enough time to see the bullet line and react. With my Hecate I'll definitely hit you. At that range, I can't miss!" You better not, because you only have one bullet left. You said so yourself.

Kirito just grinned. "You won't know for sure until you try."

Sinon stared at him for a few heartbeats, but eventually nodded. "Okay. If that's how you want it, then let's go."

Kirito walked back, turning his back on her until he had reached the ten meter mark. He trusted her, apparently. Enough to turn his back on her and let her take a potshot if she wanted. Must be nice. After he turned around, Sinon pulled back the slide on her gun, ejecting the spent bullet and preparing to fire. She put her eye to the scope and waited; Kirito just raised the bullet. "Okay," he said. "Get set." And with a small pinging sound he flipped the bullet into the air.

I watched impassively as the bullet flipped through the air - the fight wouldn't begin until it hit the ground. As the small piece of metal made flips in the air, Kirito drew his sword and dropped into his fighting stance and both players stared at each other. The bullet fell to the ground and struck with a small little metallic ring, and Sinon fired almost instantly. I blinked in shock as a blur of purple light flashed up in front of Kirito, and then swore as the bullet Sinon fired separated in midair, streaking past Kirito like two shooting stars. "What in the seven hells..." I murmured, staring wide-eyed at the screen. Sinon had reacted the same way, but rallied; she staggered back from the force of firing her rifle but gathered her feet under her and tried to pull her pistol. A shame for her that Kirito was faster; after severing the bullet and letting it pass him he lunged forward towards Sinon, clearing the distance in a ground-eating sprint.

The smoke from the truck explosion obscured our vision for a bit, but when it cleared the whole lobby burst out in exclamations of shock and surprise. Kirito had his sword to Sinon's throat, the purple blade shining brilliantly. Apparently, the girl had almost fallen over, but Kirito managed to catch her with one hand in the small of her back, holding her up and immobilizing her at the same time. Their bodies were remarkably close together. The two talked quietly, and none of the listeners could hear anything. All that we could see was that the two talked quietly for a minute or so, Kirito pressing the girl closer before turning off his sword, and then Sinon whirled around with her face bright red, shouted at Kirito, and then resigned.

I was going to congratulate Kirito on his victory, but just then a ball of light enveloped me and I was transported to my final match. My turn, then? Better give those two a good show. My nostrils flared as I realized I was fighting Musketeer X; she had made it to the final round, just as she had promised. Excellent. I smirked ruthlessly as I prepared myself for combat against her - whatever she was looking for, I wanted her to know that I was the alpha male. I was the top predator, and nobody could take that spot from me. I had two years of experience with Future Step, and nobody was going to beat me at my own game.

Come to think of it, I don't think the knife has a bullet line associated with it. Probably part of the reason I was doing so well - they only were at rank one of Future Step, so to speak, while I was at rank ten.

The stage of my final fight of the day was the Ruined City; if it was anything like the two examples I had seen in Sinon's fights, it was going to be interesting to get close to Musketeer X. I still didn't know how she fought, really, or what she used for weapons - she was never on screen when I was in the lobby, so I hadn't gotten the chance to actually observe her fight. All I knew was that she had several different types of grenades. When I spawned, my first action was to get on the top of a building. After I waited about thirty seconds to a minute, I moved out. Musketeer X wasn't searching me out or I'd have seen her moving about through the city. So it seems my opponent was a stationary one. Did she use traps or a sniper? Alternatively, she could just be setting up an ambush, like I had before. Honestly, it was a fifty-fifty chance I was fucked if I went looking for her, but it was a chance I was willing to take. After all, gambling made things fun.

The Ruined City was exactly what it sounded like; overturned cars littered the streets, alongside trash and toppled trash cans. There wasn't much cover along the streets, so if I wanted to avoid the bullets I'd need to chill out behind a car - which seemed to have a strange tendency to randomly explode - or in one of the buildings along the street. Those buildings all looked super crumbling and unsafe, though. What architect designed this place, and have they been fired yet? I shook my head and grumbled to myself - with all of the buildings as possible cover and targets simultaneously, I couldn't trust anything I saw. Was the glitter in that window a gun barrel or just a shard of glass from a shattered window? The only thing I could do was rely on my training with Future Step and hope that when I got attacked I'd be able to dodge it in time.

I reached the intersection where I had seen Sinon snipe her opponent, and I hesitated; it was wide open, and I'd have to cross through it eventually. If Musketeer X was going to ambush me, she'd do it here. I stood around the corner, taking a few deep breaths - and then dashed forward as quickly as I could possibly go. No bullet line rushed out to meet me, and as soon as I was in cover again I relaxed slightly. So far, so good; I just needed to find where Musketeer X was hiding. It was possible this was just being one large game of cops and robbers, where we were both the cops and the robbers at the same time, but I doubted it. Musketeer X knew what she was doing, and that included being able to find her target. No, if I hadn't seen her yet that was because she was hiding from me. So where in the hells was she?

An impending sense of doom was my only hint that I was about to receive my answer very violently. A rifle crack echoed out through the streets before the bullet slammed into my right shoulder, and I stumbled with shock. "How?" I spat before looking the wound in surprise. There hadn't been any bullet line pointing at me like I'd been expecting; I'd have been able to dodge cleanly if that had been the case. As it was, the sense of killing intent was the only thing that had warned me of the attack – I'd barely managed to dodge a lethal blow, but it was still galling. I looked around wildly, searching for the source of the bullet, before catching the glint of something gleaming in a third-story window. I growled something unpleasant and fairly vulgar before dashing off toward the sniper nest she had set up.

The building Musketeer X had chosen was an old library, and I looked up as I entered; the ceiling had cracked and fallen apart, affording me a view straight to the top - and allowing Musketeer X to take potshots at me as I tried to get across. Snarling, I tried to figure out if there was an easier way for me to get up there without the stairs, but no dice. This could actually be kinda bad. She had already managed to shoot me once. "How?" I called out into the dusty and dry air. "Why couldn't I see your bullet line?" Had she cheated?

"You should have brushed up on your opposition," she called back down. I couldn't tell where she was on the third floor; the echoing was too much. So that's why they tell you to be quiet in libraries, the thing was like an echo chamber. "Snipers don't have a bullet line for their first shot." I growled again, but couldn't really fault her; she was just playing by the rules. "I've watched you fight, Rythin. I know you need to get close to do anything." Don't call me by my name. It's mine and I won't have an insect sully it! "I think you'll find that it's a little bit harder than you're expecting!"

"We'll see about that," I hissed. I lunged forward, intending on just avoiding her first shot through sheer speed and then trusting my training to dodge the rest. No matter how much she had planned, I could beat her because I was just better than her. Musketeer X, however, had been much more prepared than I thought; after just two or three steps, I felt my leg brush something that gave and I frowned. "Wha-" The very loud explosion cut me off and sent me flying; my back crashed into and then through one of the rotting tables scattered around, presumably for cover. And I was covered - in splinters, but semantics. "Fuck," I gasped out. It had probably been a concussion grenade, since I didn't have several pieces of sharp metal embedded in my flesh at the moment. "A tripmine?" Clever girl. So that's what she'd been doing while I was hunting for her. Was the entire room trapped?

A bullet line centered on my forehead and I scrambled out of the way just before the bullet smashed into the wooden floors; can't sit around forever. I have to get moving, get up to where she was. Easier said than done, me, but I can't just let her use me for target practice. Rolling to my feet, I paused briefly; the bookshelves of the library had more or less stayed intact, along with their contents. I grabbed a book and tossed it in front of me; it hit another almost invisible tripline, and I ducked and covered as the grenade went off again. Another concussion blast rippled over the back of my coat, and I was up and moving the second it had passed me. The likelihood of her having more than two traps on the first floor was fairly low, so I'm pretty sure I'm safe; the second floor is probably going to have more than that, but less than the third. The third is probably going to be a veritable spider web of triplines and grenades lying in wait, so that's going to be fun. Either way, I have to get up there first. "Sit still, Rythin!"

Stop saying my name! My eyes burned with anger at her repeated use of my name. "And let you shoot me? No thanks," I snarled. I made it to the staircase and hit it at a run, deliberately skipping steps and using the wall in lieu of steps entirely at one point, just to keep my momentum. The grenades would be easily visible on the steps, so I was safe blowing through them to avoid letting her get a bead on me. Musketeer X took a few shots, leading me brilliantly, but because I knew she was able to fire without a bullet line every now and then her shots always failed to hit me; I just had to feel for the sense of danger and then dodge in an unexpected direction, and the bullet would slam into the wood instead of flesh.

The second floor was a little more dangerous than the first; without the whole center of the floor, I was restricted to just a few lanes to take. I assumed that Musketeer X had set up traps across all of the lanes, and the veritable cat's cradle of triplines told me that was correct. I swore under my breath, keeping my head down behind cover to avoid any of Musketeer X's fire. Then my eyes drifted over to the huge hole in the floor. "Please don't have predicted this," I whispered to myself. If she predicted this, I was a sitting duck. If she didn't, I'd be on the third floor and closing in fast. Taking a deep breath and clenching my right fist to stop my hand from shaking from the earlier injury, I dashed out from behind cover and literally leapt over the gap. I deliberately angled myself to be able to use the back of the bookshelf as a spring, and I tried to jump without losing too much speed.

However, no matter how fast I pushed off I still had to be still for a second, and Musketeer X took advantage of that. Not fast enough to kill me, I had gotten lucky in that she probably didn't expect me to just jump over the broken floor; I made it to the first bookshelf safely and jumped to the second, but as I pushed off again, her rifle cracked again and I felt her bullet slam into my leg. I was thrown off course and ended up crashing to the floor, rolling a few feet before sliding to a halt on my back. I snarled as I tried to push myself to my feet and failed, my leg giving out under me - apparently even though the shot was to my leg and virtual, I couldn't put any weight on it. Shit, this could be ten kinds of bad.

No. No! I refuse to let myself lie down and die. My eyes glimmering with insanity, I drew myself up and put my weight on my leg again, telling it to hold me. And it did; since this was a virtual world, I just had to ignore the reality of my situation. Everything here was just bits, zeroes and ones that informed a hunk of plastic that told my mind something that was false. I was the only real thing in this world, and I would prove it. "I am me," I hissed, moving to the steps without hesitating. "Future Step is mine and I won't let anyone take it from me!" I dashed up the steps and jumped, my instincts warning me that Musketeer X was about to shoot; the bullet cracked the wooden step in half, splinters flying everywhere. "Years spent learning its secrets, and you all think you can just walk in and know how it works?" I was genuinely mad. I had bled for this, and these people had no idea the power of what they held. I was given it for a reason, damn them, and even if that reason was because I was a sociopath, it was still mine.

I grinned ferally as I stood on the third floor, face to face with Musketeer X. "Nowhere to hide," I spat as she stood by the window, rifle aimed at me. "You've seen me move, you can't hit me with that."

Musketeer X grinned. "Who says I'm going to hit you with that?" A cloud shifted through the window, and the sunlight glittered off of shining wires everywhere. There was a small corridor to her, and the area surrounding her was clear, but other than that I had more or less nowhere to go. Any and all bookshelves had been smashed, and the walls were too far away for me to circumvent the traps that way. She flipped a lever on her gun and pointed it at me, bracing herself against the wall. "Come at me, Rythin!"

"Stop saying my name!" I shouted, dashing forward through the open corridor. I couldn't move left or right at all because of the wires, and I received bullets in my arms and legs for my trouble - the lever apparently shifted her gun to fully automatic. My previously injured leg suddenly gave out, and I crashed to the ground. Still, I had expected that and was prepared; as I sprawled, the grenade I had been holding in my right hand slid forward. "Heh."

"Wha-" Before Musketeer X could kick it away, the grenade exploded into a burst of smoke. I heard her cough as the smoke enveloped her, and that gave me my opportunity; I flipped forward using my free hand, knife out, and dashed through the smoke. My fall had just been a smoke screen to let me set up the smokescreen, and with the coughing I knew exactly where my target was. As I plunged through the smoke, I sliced out with my knife - only for it to stop suddenly with a metallic clang. My eyes widened, and a sudden gust from the wind cleared the smoke. "Hah." Musketeer X hadn't been fooled by my ruse, apparently, and had used the covering cloud of smoke to prepare for my attack. She had raised a pistol and blocked the exact path of my knife without even a bullet line.

And the barrel of said pistol was an inch away and pointed at my forehead. I blinked, stunned. Then I sighed. "Yep, I'm fucked."

I spawned up in the first floor of the Governor's Office, sighing and rubbing my forehead. "That hurts a surprising amount," I mumbled. Still, how had she predicted my attack? I don't think the knife has a bullet line…

The elevator opened up behind me, and Musketeer X strode out, silver hair hanging loose. She looked around for a few seconds before her eyes zeroed in on me and she made her way through the crowd of people congratulating her, stopping only when she was a few feet away from me. I raised an eyebrow, and she offered her open hand. The crowd murmured at that – did they think I held a grudge? Feh. I lost, fair and square. "That was a good match. If I had guessed wrong…"

I shook the proffered hand. "Still, amazing. You managed to predict the path of my knife even without a bullet line."

Musketeer X smirked slightly. "I watched you fight," she told me. "You almost always go for the neck first." Hm. Getting into habits in my fighting is hazardous for my health, it seems.

"It's crude but effective," I nodded. "So you just braced for impact and coughed to give me the idea of where you were. Beautiful."

"Still, that was an impressive fight," she said. "I was right not to underestimate you. I thought I'd take you out with the sniper shot, but after you dodged that, I was glad I set up the grenades." She studied me for a few seconds, then nodded. I glanced at her face for a second to read her expression, but I really couldn't – there was some sort of admiration in there, but I'm pretty sure it was for my skills on the battlefield more than anything. "Will you be holding a grudge against me?"

"Nah," I said with a shrug. "I lost, simple as that." I was strong enough to face my death with open eyes and not hold any enmity – that wasn't to say I didn't want to get my own back, though. I had my pride as a member of Trinity to think of, at any rate. Musketeer X nodded and started to walk past me when I turned to say, "See you in the battle royale. You won't, though." She just raised a hand in response, walking out of the Governor's Office. There was a group of people that followed her, while a couple others looked at me before apparently deciding a lousy finalist wasn't important enough to talk to. My fifteen minutes of fame were over, thankfully; looking around, I spotted Sinon with her head buried in her arms. I moved over and sat down across the table with a sigh. "How's it going, Sinon?"

She looked up, but her eyes told me she didn't really see me. She was too desperately lost in her own little world. "Oh. Rythin... It's you..."

"I watched your match. Did you find the strength you're looking for?"

That question made her look at me in shock. "How could you... Did Kirito tell you?"

I shook my head and chuckled. "No, but your response just did."

She made a noise in the back of her throat. "Jerk." I just grinned in response. "Since you're up here with the losers, I guess you lost, too."

"Fair and square," I said with a laugh. "But hey, finals. So I'm still in this thing." She had dodged the question, but I wasn't going to press. Any of her wounds would still be raw, especially after the match with Kirito. "We're in the same boat, right? You lost to Kirito and I lost to Musketeer X." I just leaned back and sighed. "Seems like everything will be decided during the battle royale, right?"

"Yeah..." Sinon finally gave me a small smile. "I'll get both of you tomorrow and win." Because she wanted strength, she'd defeat all of the other strong players and prove herself victorious.

Too bad it just didn't work that way. "It doesn't work that way, you know," I told her calmly, my eyes flat. "If you separate your personas in the game and in the real world, strength gained in one won't bleed to the other. You'll just find out, sooner or later, you're wearing a mask."

Sinon's eyes widened and her jaw dropped. "Wha-" I just shook my head and stood up.

"Think about it, Sinon," I said. I didn't really have any reason to tell her what to do, or how to play the game. If anything, it was a mistake that she would have to make for herself. Otherwise, she'd never truly understand. "I'm gonna go meet up with Kirito, if that jerk hasn't left yet. See you." As I left the table with her staring at me, I headed towards the elevators and waited patiently for one to arrive. When one did, the doors slid open and I stood aside; Spiegel was in there, probably coming up to meet with Sinon. He walked past me, and I narrowed my eyes. Something was definitely wrong with that guy, but I had no idea what it was. Then again, something was definitely wrong with me, so it's not like I could particularly judge.

Fortunately for me, Kirito was waiting in the seat where we had been sitting with Sinon before the fighting started. "I saw your fight," I said casually as I slumped into the seat next to him. "Playing the field, are we?"

"There's absolutely no reason for Asuna to know anything that happened today," he said promptly. "Especially since you only have half the story." I just grinned and waved away the suspicion that I would say anything. "I got to watch you fight, too."

I chuckled weakly and ruefully. "Ouch. I'm hearing disappointment. All the fights?"

"Not the final," he told me before sighing. "You got angry again," he said, shaking his head. "I thought you had that under control."

"Um... Kinda?" I said, nibbling at my index knuckle absently. "Most of the time I've got it under control, but then there are some times when I just get lost in the bloodlust."

"Doing okay?"

"Yeah. It helps that you're not freaking out anymore." I leaned forward, pinning him with my gaze when he tried to look away. "It's the Laughing Coffin memories, isn't it." He sighed reluctantly before nodding, and I frowned in something that was half anger, half sadness. "They're coming back."

"You knew?" I nodded despite my misgivings, and Kirito sighed. "I really shouldn't be surprised. And you didn't say anything?" Was he angry at me? Gods, I hope not.

"Kirito, the mind blocks things out for a reason," I said. "This is just my bullshit armchair psychoanalysis, but if you forgot about the killings, or at least repressed them, then it was for a reason." I gritted my teeth. "You were broken after that fight, when you told me about what happened. I couldn't help you then, but when you never brought it up again I just hoped I wouldn't have to ever let it come to mind." I shook my head. "Killing is something nobody with a soul can do and not lose some part of it, and if you never really remembered you'd done something so horrible, well, I wasn't going to be the one to tear the illusion from you."

Kirito was silent for a long time, long enough to make me start wondering if maybe I had made a mistake, but eventually he sighed. "Yeah. I understand why you didn't say anything, at least."

There was a little more silence, before I broke it. "So what did Sinon want to say? When you two were talking at the end of your match, we couldn't hear anything."

Kirito smiled. "She asked how I knew where she was aiming. I told her I followed the path of her eye." Makes sense; you always look at your target, especially using something like a rifle scope. "Then she asked if I was so strong, why I looked so afraid after...you know."

"And?"

"I told her it wasn't strength, just skill. She didn't believe me, so I asked her if she could kill someone by shooting them. And if she had to kill someone to protect the one she loved, would she do it?" I smiled slightly, understanding exactly what he was talking about.

I folded my arms on the table. "Can you?"

"I want to forget," Kirito said softly. "Every day, I hope I forget that I killed those people, and every day I see their faces." I heard his words, but I couldn't understanding their meaning; the people I killed, I don't even remember what they looked like. I just remember that I had to do it and that it didn't bother me in the slightest to feel them die. "I can't go through that again."

"And then she realized you were holding her very closely," I said with a cat-like smirk, "and got all embarrassed. Did you give her that line about not liking to cut girls?" My friend flushed slightly, and my smirk widened. "Oh, you did, did you? That's fantastic." Kirito started to say something, but I just shook my head and waved a hand. "C'mon, let's go. It's getting late and I'm pretty sure that Aki nurse is getting tired of staring avidly at your half-naked body." Then I tilted my head to the side slightly, looking at the ceiling. "Well, actually, I'm not sure if she'd ever get tired of that..."

"Yeah let's get going!" Kirito yelped. "I'm starting to get hungry, aren't you?" He was speaking quickly, and I just laughed as we both swiped open our menus and logged out.

As I opened my eyes in the real world and took a few seconds to recover from the increased gravity, I listened to Kazuto complain about Aki being a little bit too close for comfort. He'd been handling it before, but I just hadn't realized how much guilt he still felt about killing those people. Maybe this will help. Maybe it won't. I just hope when the dust settles that my friend is still here.

* * *

 **Rythin may be good at dodging, since he's had a long time to practice avoiding the attack prediction, but he'll still get caught off guard when he gets cocky.**

 **Also, I swear I didn't know anything about the Bullet Prediction Line when I created Future Step. That was a total surprise to me when I saw it in the show – it does, however, vindicate the addition of the skill. My reaction when I realized that the Bullet Prediction Line worked almost exactly how I wrote Future Step was more or less "Fucking called it" with a hint of "Holy shit this thing I made up for my stupid fanfiction was essentially a major part of GGO".**

 **And yes I know that the GGO arc was written well in advance of me doing anything with the fandom – I think the light novels were up to Volume 13 when I started writing Nightblade?**

 **Song featured in this chapter: unravel (from Tokyo Ghoul. One of the many English covers available on the internet; I think this particular one was from Ky0umi)**

 **Many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.**

* * *

 **KnightEstoc's Corner of Explanation!**

So, some people have been wondering 'Why is Rythin being so nice to people? That's bizarre! He's a jerk to everyone constantly!' Well, a few things have happened.

One, Kana's been helping him. That's the major one, really; because she's there, he doesn't really feel the need to put up that wall of belligerence between himself and the rest of the world. I mean, he'll still be a jerk because it's funny, like when he didn't tell Sinon Kirito's actually a guy, but not because he's actively trying to push people away.

Two, the Steel Hearts / SOS Brigade were a special case – he was on contract. While on contract, he does try to maintain a certain level of professionalism; polite, calm, controlled except for certain cases mostly regarding insults to Argo or the other members of Trinity. It's bad for business if he drives away the customers. That being said, when he's not on contract he's kind of a jerk to people, and like was briefly mentioned in passing he and Kana are keeping a list of threats they've received from people less than pleased by his manner.

Also, Rythin's not in a bad mood yet. This is just another job, there's nothing personal to it – or at least, there wasn't until Death Gun turned out to be a member of Laughing Coffin and he made Kirito freak out.

Don't worry, our favorite sadistic sociopath isn't going anywhere, and he's still got plenty of issues. Just so happens that right now is a good part of the up/down cycle that is his mental state. And you know what they say about the peak of the hill… (Wait is that an actual saying shit I don't know. Something something only way to go is down.)


	5. Determination

**Chapter 5: Determination**

* * *

I wasn't sure where I was; was I in an arena, or a battleground, or house? No, I couldn't tell. It was like a pit, though, so maybe I was in a dungeon? Either way, Kazuto was there – no, I was there and he was here and… Sinon was there as well, with a chain piercing through her chest. A thick chain, trailing off behind her. Kazuto had several chains connected to him as well, and they seemed to be heavy; I was walking faster than they were, and they seemed to be struggling (trying so hard) to keep up with me. I looked down and saw four thin chains connected to me, but they were loose, like they had no purchase in my chest. I poked at them, but they stayed connected. So why were my chains so much lighter than Kazuto's or Sinon's? The chains were the same thickness as Kazuto's, and I had one more, so I should be struggling to keep up with them, not the other way around. I wasn't any stronger than them, so why did I -

 **December 14** **th** **, 2025**

I was woken up by a weight - most likely about thirteen or fourteen pounds, if I was guessing correctly - suddenly introducing itself to my stomach.

I reacted instinctively, the viper guiding my hands in a strike that would have been dangerous against a human attacker; it was only once I missed that I checked myself, actually figuring out what had woken me up. "Gods... Catling, this is not how you say good morning!" I groaned, rolling over and throwing him off of me. He meowed, demanding attention, and I groggily reached a hand out and held it there, letting him pet himself. I buried my head in my pillow, trying to go back to sleep; my cat finished scratching himself against my hand and curled up against my chest, purring softly. "That's better," I muttered.

I couldn't fall back asleep no matter how hard I tried, so I sat up, rubbing at my eyes. I glanced at my clock, and decided to actually get out of bed since it was after ten. I had gotten to bed late...

* * *

Kazuto had dropped me off just before eleven at night, and by the time I had finished running through my exercises and drills it was past 11:30. I hesitated to call Kana, since it was highly likely my girlfriend had already gone to bed, when my phone buzzed with a message from her; it told me to get on the computer. "Talk about timing," I muttered. After my computer booted up, I called Kana only for her to pick up immediately. "Hello, beautiful."

"Hey, Nick," she replied with a smile. "How's it going?"

An honest smile crossed my face for just a brief second. "It's going fine, I guess. How was your day?"

"Fantastic. How did your thing go? I checked out the MMO Today, and I see you were in rare form."

I smiled. "Things went well enough, I guess. Came in second in my bracket, so yeah."

"That's the Rythin I know and love." She smiled. "Did you kick all kinds of ass?"

"Left, right, and sideways," I said with a slightly more bloodthirsty grin. "Most of them had no ideas what they were up against. Turns out, the game has a system that's more or less functionally identical to Future Step." Kana started laughing brightly, and I tilted my head back slightly. "And yes, it's exactly what you think. The bullets move fast but they still have a bullet line prediction, and that's all I need to dodge them."

"Sounds like you're in the Matrix," Kana noted.

"I haven't dodged bullets _that_ well," I said, rubbing my shoulder with a grimace. "I can dodge a lot of them, but not everything. At least it doesn't feel too bad when I get shot." Kinda like taking one of Asuna's stabs, really. Just a lot slower.

Kana laughed, then looked to the side for a second, her eyes moving as though she was reading something. "Oh, yeah, that's right. Kazuto's sister called earlier."

"Sugu?" I asked. "What did she want?"

Kana shrugged, the image of her body moving in intriguing ways. It had been a while since she had started her yoga; I wonder how fit her body was now. She was definitely more flexible than I was, especially if the range of movement on her shoulders was any indication. Oh, right, I should probably stop staring. "Like what you see?"

Naturally, sweetheart. I'll never not. "Muscles and skeletons fascinate me," I said with a shrug. "Sugu?"

Kana blinked. "Oh, yeah, that's right. Um, I have notes here..." She looked around on her desk for a bit before picking up a piece of paper. "Nothing special, she was just catching up. I think she wanted to ask you something, though. Asked if you could drop by sometime tomorrow."

In person? Eh, whatever. I wanted to take a walk today, get a little bit of exercise in. "Okay." It was entirely possible Sugu called me; I hadn't actually checked my phone recently, something I should probably get in the habit of doing. "I'll drop by tomorrow after I crash."

Something in my face must have given me away, because Kana suddenly looked a little concerned. "What happened?"

"Eh?"

"Something happened, I can see it in your eyes," Kana said, leaning forward slightly. "Something in the game went wrong." Right, I should have known I couldn't hide anything from the best information broker I'd ever found.

I took a deep breath and sighed slowly, trying to decide what exactly I was going to tell. I had to keep a few things secret - opsec and whatever - but she couldn't help if she didn't know enough. "We found our target, but the recon isn't finished yet. Problem one is that Kazuto's having flashbacks to Aincrad and the time he had to kill members of Laughing Coffin." I felt my lips quirk slightly at the look of dawning horror on her face. "Yeah... It's not pretty. It was pretty rough, but we both made it through to the finals."

"Anything else?" Kana asked softly. She knew how much I cared about Kazuto, and seeing him have issues like that was hard. "You said problem one."

"Problem two is the rage is getting a little out of control," I admitted with a sigh. "The guy that freaked out Kazuto, I confronted him but I couldn't actually do anything. That just pissed me off so much that I was fighting mad, taking it out on my opponents."

Kana didn't really react, making me feel better. I hadn't disappointed her, at least. "I thought we were getting somewhere," she said finally.

"No, it's definitely helping to talk about things like this with you," I hastened to reassure her. "Honest - if I didn't have you, things would be about ten times worse." I still remembered the month or so after escaping Aincrad when I was at the mercy of my rage without even knowing it. At least now, I knew when the rage was taking over and I could try to restrain it behind the shields. "Don't ever think you're not helping. I've been trying to do what Yui suggested and not…repress my emotions, I think she said. I think it's working…"

"It is," Kana assured me. "You're a lot more open now. Maybe a little nicer, too. I heard you helped Silica out with her homework after the raid." She leaned her chin on her hand and grinned. "How sweet. Two cats, just sunning and working on math together."

"I'll have you know it was her literature assignment," I said with as much pride as I could muster, as exhausted as it was. "But I think being a little more like that is making the rage spike more often. But don't worry, I know how to control it when I'm not, well, out of control."

My girlfriend smiled tenderly. "As long as you think you're okay, I'm happy."

"It's under control," I told her. "I managed to break the viper's fangs against my final opponent." Musketeer X had been the only person that was a challenge, and that had been enough to calm the insanity. "I lost the final, by the way. She'd watched my previous matches, and managed to figure out a counter that quickly. I think what happened is she set up an entire building with tripwires and grenades, and then went to the top and sniped at me while I had to run the gauntlet."

"Sounds like you're impressed," Kana noted with a smile.

I just shrugged in response. "A little? She's good at what she does. Either way, I'm still in the real tournament, the loss just means my odds of winning are going to be more in my favor. Maybe I can get Kazuto to place a few bets..."

Kana leaned her chin on one of her hands. "I doubt they allow competitors to place bets," she said casually.

"Ruin the rest of my hopes and dreams, why don't you. Next you'll tell me the threesome with twins is off the table because you're an only child." My girlfriend laughed at my sullen grumble, and I smiled. "Alright, I'm exhausted, so I'll talk to you -" my jaw cracked open and a long yawn interrupted me. "Sorry. I'll talk to you tomorrow, okay? Make sure to watch the tournament."

"Will do. Love you, Nick."

"And I you, Kana. Good night." I really did love her, and she loved me, and that was what I needed. Gods, without her I'd be no better than a wild animal, a snake lashing out because it was angry. Annnndddd... Sleepy.

* * *

...and even with the ten plus hours of sleep the late night left me feeling a bit tired. I had skipped dinner, hadn't I? That's probably part of it. Maybe I should have breakfast soon. But, but but but, it's entirely possible I might be able to kill two birds with one stone. Sugu already makes food for Kazuto, right? It might be entirely possible she make a little extra, right? And he sleeps in late anyway, so I'm probably up before him anyway... That's an idea. I grabbed my phone and hit speed dial 4; as it rang, I spent a brief moment to thank past me for being smart enough to set the speed dials. He's a good guy, though he tends to create shit for me to deal with. And future me's a jerk, so screw that guy.

My cat meowed, and I absently reached over to scratch him while the phone rang. "Is it strange that I consider my differently-tensed selves different people?" I asked him. Being a cat, he didn't actually answer and instead purred. "Well you're no help."

The phone was finally answered, and a female voice said, "Hello, Kirigaya residence."

I smiled. "Hey, Sugu."

"Oh, Nick." Sugu said, and I heard a smile in her voice. "What's up?"

"Well, I am, for one thing, and I didn't have breakfast, and I was going to swing by anyway..." I was gonna skip my martial arts class because let's face it, I had some more important things to deal with.

Sugu laughed cheerfully. "I'll make some lunch for you. I was about to go wake up Kazuto anyway, but it's a little late for breakfast."

"You're the best, Sugu," I said with a smile. "Have I mentioned that recently?"

"Yes, but please, by all means repeat yourself."

"You're the best, Sugu," I repeated. On the other end of the line, Sugu laughed before saying she had to go wake up her lazy brother. "Alright. I'll see you both in about an hour, hour and a half. Later." I'm glad that she's family. I mean, not literally, but she might as well be my actual blood-related sister. Honestly, I loved both of the Kirigayas as siblings. I was an only child, and didn't really get along with my parents, so Kazuto and Sugu, along with Asuna, were my real family.

I had an hour or so to kill, so I decided to walk to their house; it saved gas, ensured I didn't have to worry about retrieving my bike later, and got me some exercise at the same time. In other words, a win-win-win. It was a little cold out, but that was the point of my jacket; I liked it, what with the red trim. My hands were cold, though - maybe I should pick up some gloves after Christmas rolls around. It was cold enough that I could see my breath, so not many people were walking around - the few that were had a determined look on their faces, trying to get where they needed to go as quickly as possible so that they didn't have to be out in the cold any longer. I passed by a park with two teenagers a little younger than me; I smiled to myself as the boy - a scrawny guy in a yellow jacket and black baseball cap - hugged the girl - slightly shorter, black hair and glasses - tightly. How sickeningly sweet, and just before Christmas too. I hope he saved up enough money to get her a gift, though he probably was already planning on it if his feelings were of any indication. The viper hissed, telling me to move over and silence their heartbeats forever, but I ignored it; I had to, there was no profit to be gained in killing them except whatever money they had in their wallets, and there could be witnesses, and there were two of them, making it hard to guarantee that I could kill them both before one gave out the alarm.

As I walked, I thought about what had happened the day before. Kazuto was finally really coming to grips with what happened in Aincrad; when he killed those people. I wouldn't be surprised to learn he'd had nightmares about it, too. Poor guy... Though in a way, I envied him. I was a monster, and I couldn't feel regret or remorse like Kazuto could. What was it like, feeling the weight of your actions in the grand sense? I only felt guilty when my actions hurt the people I cared about, and I stopped feeling that once I had made it up to them. My close relationship with Sugu was the product of feeling guilty for taking out my anger on her during our first infiltration into Alfheim, but I've stopped feeling guilty now that she and I have gotten close. I could never feel anything like what Kazuto's feeling - deep, constant guilt and regret that I'd killed someone. I did kill someone, and it's just water under the bridge. And every time I realize that it's a little frightening all over again.

At what point do I stop being uncertain about who and what I am? When the hell will I just accept myself for me? I'm sadistic, murderous, unable to feel empathy, and there's nothing more to me; the only people that matter are the four or five that I've grown close to and they're the only people that will ever matter. I can kill and murder without feeling anything because nobody feels anything about crushing insects underfoot, naturally. But I wasn't human because humans had morals and ethics. Humans felt guilty about murdering people, so I couldn't be human. I was a monster, plain and simple. Nothing more, nothing less.

Hm. I really need to remember my music when I leave, because otherwise I just can't distract myself. And I definitely need to be distracted, though the music thread that always runs through my head keeps the worst things quiet. Let's see... I think right now is some Wagner. Everything's better with Wagner.

Eventually, and despite my occasional morbid desires, I made it to the Kirigaya house and rang the doorbell. After a few seconds of huddling in my coat and shivering, the door slid open and Sugu blinked. "Nick, get inside! It's freezing out!" she exclaimed. "Why don't you have a hat on? Did you walk here?"

"One, I noticed it's freezing," I ground out through chattering teeth, answering her in order as I stepped inside and she closed the door behind me. "Two, I forgot, and three, yes."

"You're an idiot."

I smiled slightly as I finally started warming up enough to feel like taking off my coat and boots. "I've missed you too, sister dear." Sugu gently bopped me on my head with a fist. I say gentle, but both of us were trained; I knew exactly how much strength she was holding back. "Look at it this way." I paused, not really sure where I was going with that. "…Uh…"

She folded her arms. "And what possible way could make you seem like less of an idiot for walking an hour in freezing cold weather without a hat or gloves?"

"Um..." I looked around desperately, and my salvation arrived in the form of my surrogate brother. "Kazuto, hey, how's it going?"

"Hey, Nick," he said without missing a beat. Sugu had probably told him I was coming over. "How's it going?"

"A little cold," I said, taking the opportunity to distract Sugu by ruffling her hair. She squawked and glared at me before walking off to fix the damage. "Does she know?" I hissed at him as soon as she was out of earshot. "She called Kana last night and said she wanted to talk to me about something."

"I don't think she knows anything," he whispered back. "If she did, she would probably be a little madder at us, not making lunch."

"What are you two whispering about over there?" Sugu asked, coming back into the main room.

"Nothing much," I told her. "Just trying to figure out some logistical problems."

Sugu gave me a look that said she didn't really buy it for a second. "Lunch is going to be ready soon," she said, "so finish up your skulking and come get ready to eat." But I'm always skulking. I can't not skulk.

Lunch was apparently some sort of gumbo, and I wasn't complaining; Sugu was a pretty fantastic chef. I applied myself to my meal without hesitating, scarfing it down because I had missed breakfast; Kazuto, on the other hand, ate calmly, choosing to go at the side salad first. For her part, Sugu chose to... stare at Kazuto and me, resting her head on her hands with a happy smile. I felt a small stirring of unease, which was only magnified when she said, "Kazuto..." oh so sweetly. I was very suddenly reminded of poisonous snakes with the brightest coloring - their beauty hid the very real danger from us. Basically I'm saying that Sugu was absolutely terrifying.

Kazuto paused halfway just before eating a cherry tomato. "Okay, what's with that goofy grin?" he asked, either blindly walking straight into the trap or deciding to get it over with.

"Well..." Sugu leaned over and grabbed a tablet, holding it across to the table so we both could see. It was a list of the winners of the Bullet of Bullet prelims, and I felt a small chill run down my spine. "This morning I just so happened to see an interesting article. And then I noticed that." She pointed, and we followed her finger to the winners of F block. That just happened to be Kirito and Sinon. Then her finger trailed down to J block, and I saw my name there in black and white.

"Oh..." Kazuto laughed uneasily. "Wow, what are the odds, someone's got a similar handle." Wait, had he not prepared for this? He honestly expected to be able to fool Sugu with that? Girl was sharp, I'll give her that.

"Yeah," Sugu agreed without her calm smile slipping at all. "Except this isn't similar, it's exactly the same. And..." Sugu glanced at me, and I just gave her a poker-face smile. Nothing to see here, sister, move along. "There just so happens to be someone with your same username, Nick. That's a very strange coincidence."

"Let me see..." I made a show of looking for 'my' username. "Well, this obviously isn't me." Sugu raised an eyebrow, and I continued, "This Rythin got second place, and as we all know I'm far too good at everything to lose. So obviously, this guy can't be me." It's almost funny, in a sad way, really; anytime I boast I'm lying and anytime I insult myself I'm telling the truth.

Kazuto tried to pick up where I left off. "And the name Kirito isn't really that unusual. I mean, mine's an abbreviation. Maybe the Kirito in GGO's name is... Kiri... Kirigamine!" Wow. That's just pathetic. And I thought my excuse was bad. "Yeah, Togero Kirigamine, or something..." He ate the cherry tomato, and I silently thanked him for shutting up. Sugu just kept watching us with a grin, and eventually Kazuto said, "Better eat up or it's gonna get cold." Kazuto set to work eating his meal, and I couldn't help but noticed the way his eyes were distant - and the dark bruises under his eyes. Like I thought, probably nightmares. I didn't get nightmares, not usually, or if I did I never remembered them. I had dreams, but I had stopped having nightmares a long time ago. My last one was about losing my friends to the boss in Aincrad Yui destroyed. I touched my chest without thinking, tracing the scar, and realized that had been a year ago. A whole year, and yet Kazuto's scars hadn't healed in the slightest.

"Kazuto," Sugu said softly, and my friend jerked. "You're making that scary face again."

"I hope it's not scarier than usual," Kazuto said before laughing uneasily.

Sugu sighed and laced her fingers together. "Look, I already know everything." Alright then. I paused in eating my lunch and set my silverware on the plate, watching her calmly. "I know you two converted your avatars from ALO to GGO, so just drop the act already, okay?"

"Very well," I said softly. "If I may ask, how did you learn?"

"Oh, come on," Sugu said. "Did you really think _I_ wouldn't notice when my brother and one of my closest friend suddenly vanished from my friends list?" Aw, that's sweet, she considered me her brother. Heh.

"Ah," I murmured. I knew we had forgotten something. "The best laid plans of mice and men oft go awry." I really should have known she would figure it out, especially with the way Kazuto was acting on the drive back. Why exactly did I let him drive home again last night? Thinking back on it, that was a really stupid thing to do.

"I didn't think you checked that thing every five minutes," Kazuto said with a chuckle.

Sugu looked serious. "I don't, I just knew..." Her eyes were shimmering, and I felt myself start to soften. I hated it when she looked upset, and if she started crying that would just be horrible. "Last night, I got this weird feeling and checked my list. When I saw you two weren't on it, I was torn between calling you, Nick, to shout at you for about an hour straight and heading over to your room, Kazuto, and busting the door down." I guess I'm grateful she chose Kazuto's option, though it did mean throwing my friend under the bus. Sugu looked down, eyes closed. "I didn't, because I knew it would piss you off something fierce. I also know neither of you would quit ALO without telling me." She looked up. "I figured you must have a good reason, so I called Asuna up to see if she knew anything." And then once Asuna confirmed why we had left the game, Sugu had called Kana to ask me to come over today so she could confront both of us about it.

"You did, hm..." I looked at Kazuto, and I felt worry wake as I looked at the dark circles under his eyes again. He really needed to rest. I was definitely driving today. He stared off into the distance, thinking about something; if I had to guess, it was something related to Asuna. He probably talked to her last night, just to hear her voice; I did the same thing, after all – hearing Kana's voice just made everything seem better, somehow. The anger and bloodlust faded away when she was with me.

Sugu quietly stood up and crossed the table to stand behind Kazuto and place her hands on his shoulders. "Kazuto," she murmured, startling him. "Know what Asuna told me? She said not to worry, because once you tore up GGO you'd be back. She didn't say it, but I know she was really worried about you. That makes two of us." I was looking outside the window, giving them the illusion of privacy, but there wasn't really much else I could do. I hadn't finished my meal entirely, so I couldn't even use clearing dishes as an excuse. "Last night, you got home so late, and when I saw your face I wanted to say something, because you looked so freaked out."

"I did?" Kazuto murmured. "I'm sorry."

"I hope you're not doing anything crazy," Sugu said quietly, "because if you are, I couldn't bear it if something happened to you.

"I'm going to be fine," Kazuto said louder, and I turned back at the small sign that the private chat was over. He had his hand over his sister's, and she looked a little surprised. "I promise. Besides, Nick's there too. Anything I can't handle, he's got my back." I grinned and nodded to Sugu, confirming the words. "And tonight's the last night of GGO's tourney and after that, I'm going to be back. To ALO, and here." I placed my hand on Sugu's arm, rubbing her shoulder comfortingly. We were going to be back no matter what it took. "We'll be back no matter what, so don't worry, okay?"

"Okay." With a small laugh, she straightened up and took her seat back on her side of the dining table, poking at her side salad with a fork. "Oh, I almost forgot. When I was talking to Kana last night -" At this announcement, Kazuto looked at me, and I nodded, "- she mentioned that you two are each going to get a huge check from this new gig." Er. Kazuto and I both blanched, looking at each other, and Sugu's expression took a decided turn for the smugly satisfied. Double er.

"T-that's right," Kazuto stammered, "and when I get back I'll treat you to something cool."

"Seriously?" Well, at least Sugu's happy again. Worth it, I guess, especially since I'm not the one paying for it. "In that case, there's this awesome new nanocarbon shinai I've had my eye on." Yep, definitely glad I'm not paying for it. Sucks to be you, buddy, but that's the breaks. Besides, I was going to grab something nice for Kana.

"Oh, okay" Kazuto said weakly. "Sure. You got it." No computer upgrade for you, Kazuto. I don't even know if that's what he was going to spend it on, I'm just guessing blindly here.

After lunch, Kazuto and I prepared to leave, and after I told him I was driving and ganked the keys, Sugu called out from the living room for me. "Be right back," I told Kazuto, and wandered over to where Sugu was sitting. "What's up?"

"Is he okay?"

I blinked and took a seat. "Define the statement," I said quietly, folding my arms and trying to avoid her gaze.

Sugu's lips pursed slightly. "I knew it," she muttered. "Something happened, I know it did, and I'm worried about him. So is Asuna." She took a deep breath. "Do you need us to come into the game and help out?"

"No," I said immediately, maybe a little bit too quickly if the brief hurt that flashed across her face was any indication. "No," I repeated, a little more kindly this time. "Kazuto would kill me if I let you get dragged into this, and more to the point, I'd kill me. Sugu, nothing's going to happen that neither of us can't handle. We've dealt with worse things before, and everything's going to be alright. You'll have both your brother and me back in one piece, okay?"

Sugu smiled at me. "Thanks, Nick. And…" She fidgeted slightly. "I kinda think of you as a brother, you know." I smiled at her, pleased. It felt good, having actual family.

"You're the best little sister I could ever hope for," I told her, just before ruffling her hair. It was true; I was thinking about starting sparring with her, just for practice against someone training with a weapon.

"Take care of him for me, okay?"

I knew just how stupid Kazuto could get at times; the damn fool thought he could save everybody from everything. Well, I guess it's my job to watch his back and make sure nothing attacks from behind, after all. If I belong in the shadows, I'll make sure Kazuto can stay in the light. "Of course, Sugu." I patted her shoulder comfortingly, and she smiled gratefully. "Now Kazuto and I have to split. We'll probably be done late, so see you tonight or tomorrow, I guess." If Kazuto was still a bit messed up after the battle royale, I was driving him home and then walking the rest of the way; otherwise, I was just gonna ask for a ride.

On the ride to the hospital, Kazuto was quiet except to give me directions when I asked for them. I had to use his sister's helmet, which made me glad she wasn't the type of girl that liked pink and flowers and rainbows. I'll take a light green one over that any day, though if I were going to be entirely honest with myself I would have preferred my own black and red helmet. It had more character, and besides I liked the colors more. We made our way past a few doctors and nurses to the same room we were in last time, and were greeted by Miss Aki again. "Hello again," she said brightly. "I'll just get everything ready, so if you have to use the bathroom, now's the time." I decided to take her up on her offer and moved to use the adjoining bathroom, closing the door behind me and taking care of business while I listened to her hum to herself, the machine beeping every now and then. "What's the matter, kiddo," I heard her say, and I frowned. Kazuto again? "You look like you've seen a ghost."

Now, being who and what I am, eavesdropping was perfectly acceptable to me, so once I was finished urinating I didn't flush right away, instead just leaning against the door and listening. "N-no, nothing," Kazuto said.

"You got a super-hot nurse sitting here offering free counseling, and you're gonna pass it up?" Eh, Kazuto was never really the type to go for the older... Actually, on second thought, scratch that. Asuna was older than him by a year, after all. "C'mon, tell me what's bothering you?"

"Well, since you put it that way, I guess I really don't have a choice, do I?" There was a bit of silence before Kazuto started talking again. "Before you came to the rehab unit, you were in trauma, right?" My eyes widened, and I silently stared at the ceiling.

"That I was."

"I've got a... personal question," Kazuto said. "And if you don't wanna answer, I totally understand. Of all the patients you've cared for... can you remember the ones who died?"

Shit. Shit, shit, shit. Well, at least he's talking to someone about it, even if it is eating him alive. He's surprisingly strong, actually. I'm shocked that he'd managed this long without cracking in an obvious way. Take me, for example – I only had to have my friends move away for me to throw myself headlong into isolation, and killing one person was enough for my psyche to break entirely. "Let's see... I guess if I think about it, I can recall their faces and names," Aki replied. "Even patients I only spent an hour or so with in the OR. Mm-hmm, I remember."

"Do you ever wish you could just forget about those people?" Trust me, Kazuto, that has its own weight attached to it. A heavy weight, one that I'm not sure you'd be the same if you picked up.

"That's a tough one. Not sure if this is an answer, but it's the best I've got. I guess if something's meant to be forgotten, a person'll end up forgetting it." So I was meant to forget the faces of those people that I've killed? I remember that I killed them, it was part of the past, but I have no idea what they looked like - it doesn't keep me up at night, and I don't get nightmares about it. "Without even thinking they want to. That said, the more a person wishes they could forget something, the stronger the memory becomes. Until they can't stop thinking about it. And if that's the case, maybe subconsciously whatever the memory is, it's something that shouldn't be forgotten."

No. Killing another human is something that shouldn't be forgotten. Not for a human. But I was a monster, and I've never even met another of my kind, really, aside from Kayaba, and I didn't kill him. I tried my hardest, certainly, and if I had succeeded I'm sure I would have his face burned into my mind forever. Taking the life of one of your own has to be the hardest thing anyone's ever done. Kazuto sighed. "Then if I forgot, I must be a monster."

My jaw dropped, and I stared at the tacky wallpaper in the room without really seeing it. That... That genuinely hurt, hearing Kazuto verbalize what I am. Like a punch to the gut, only this one hurts more as my heart continues beating, not less. Ignorant of my pain, Kazuto continued, "When I was stuck in SAO, I took out... No, I killed three people. They were all red players, so murder was their business, and I could have overpowered them instead of killing them, but... I went ahead and killed them anyway. I did it out of rage, hatred, revenge... And over the past year, I've totally forgotten all about those people. Even as I sit here talking about it, I can't remember what two of them look like, or what their names were. If I can forget people I killed, what's that say about me as a person?"

"I'm sorry, Kirigaya. I guess I'm not the awesome counselor I thought I was." I didn't want to listen to any more of this. Kazuto's words just kept echoing in my ears. But I had to listen. I had to know. "I wish I could take away the burden you're carrying, or at least help share the load of it. And what do I know? I've never even played Sword Art Online. When you say you've killed someone, I don't even know what that means. But, there's one thing I know. When all's said and done, the reason you did what you did was to save someone else, wasn't it?" To save Asuna, to save the other players from the red guild. But I didn't do anything to save them, did I? I just killed because they were obstacles in my way. Sure, I was saving my own life, but they were just insects to me. Something that needed to be removed. Kazuto at least had a noble reason to kill someone. "In the medical field, sometimes we have to choose who we save. It doesn't make the decision to let someone die any easier, but still... In a life or death situation, everyone's got the right to consider the ones they can save over those they can't. Even you. Just think about the lives of all the people you've saved, and you'll make peace with your decision."

Kazuto mumbled something, and even though the doors were thin I couldn't hear it very. "I can't!" he suddenly shouted. "I killed people! I killed them and I can't even remember who they were! Don't you get it? It's like I don't even care that they're dead! I don't deserve to find any peace!" And what did that say about me, then? I don't deserve to find any peace either, since my sins - for lack of a better word - were so much heavier than his. I'd tried to shoulder the burden of being the ruthless one so that he didn't have to, but if what little weight he carried was enough to deny him peace, I was doomed to a lifetime of torment.

"If you didn't care about what you did, you wouldn't be suffering like this," Aki said quietly. "Deep down, you remember. And when the time's right, it'll all come back to you. When it does, and it will, just make sure you remember all the people that are alive today because you were there to protect them."

"And besides," I said, opening the door and flushing the toilet, "take it from a _real_ monster. Just the fact that you're bothered by the fact that you can't remember them right now means you're still human."

Kazuto's eyes widened as he probably realized that I had overheard everything – as well as when he wondered if he was a monster for not remembering the names and faces of people that he'd killed. "Oh Jesus - Nick, I didn't mean -"

"It's...Kazuto," I said, shaking my head, "I accept what I am. I'm a monster wearing human skin." It hurts to admit it, but if I don't want to get hurt later I need to accept what I am as quickly as I can. If I didn't, and I tried to expect my friends to accept me when I myself didn't, I was just looking for pain. "Nothing more, nothing less." I shrugged, my eyes flat, before licking my lips unconsciously. "By even acknowledging that you killed people, you prove yourself to be more than me." I sighed. "I killed four people." Both his and Aki's eyes widened as I casually admitted to the notches on my belt. "But to me they weren't people. That's what makes me a monster and not you." I shook my head. "You can call yourself a monster for not remembering their faces, but you killed for Asuna, to keep the players safe. I killed because there were four insects in my path and it was faster to crush them than to go around. You had a reason to kill. I didn't."

"Nick," Kazuto said finally, "I didn't..." He looked away - for good reason. I glanced at Aki, but she didn't seem to have anything to say either. It makes sense, though, when you think about it; they must have thought I was strong for being able to bear the weight of four deaths on my shoulders, but it wasn't like that. I didn't even register the weight because there wasn't one. Why would I be hung up about removing four obstacles from my path?

"I have Kana," I said flatly, "and I still consider you family." Despite the words traded between him and Aki while I was in the bathroom, I still thought of him as a brother. I smiled slightly, though I'm certain by Kazuto's wince that it didn't reach my eyes. "I know that any offense I may have taken was entirely accidental and due to your stressed state, so I won't hold it against you." It definitely hurt – the wound he had opened would be raw for a good long time when I thought about it – but the best thing to do was press the hurt down and crystallize it until the pain was distant enough that I could ignore it for the time. I couldn't afford to be distracted by my emotions when I was fighting.

"I..." Slowly, Kazuto returned the smile. "Thanks, Nick. And I really am sorry. I wasn't thinking." A slip of the tongue? Or what he really thought, deep down under... No. I _refuse_ to suspect my family. They cared about me, despite everything I was. That was all I needed to know. It's unthinkable that they could betray me in that way.

We got stripped down and Aki attached the electrodes to us again, and as I was lying down, staring at the ceiling, Kazuto said, "Um, Miss Aki? Thank you... You know, for the pep talk."

Aki turned from where she was setting something up on the monitor, and smiled. "Sure thing. Glad I could help. Oh, and Nick, if you ever need to talk, I'm available."

"Mm." I doubted I'd ever take her up on that, but it couldn't hurt to keep the option open.

I glanced over at where Kazuto was sitting up, putting his AmuSphere on his head. As he folded down the visor, he said, "I don't think anything will happen until after 8 o'clock. We should be out by 10:00 at the latest." He lied down, and I returned my gaze to the ceiling. I cracked my knuckles of my left hand, one at a time by taking each finger between the thumb and forefinger of my right and pulling, before cracking my neck and throwing my shoulders back to crack my spine. I seem to be broken from sparring, though it's in the good kind of way. "Well, here we go."

"Okie-doke!" Aki exclaimed, smiling and holding up a hand to him as if in farewell. I watched them out of the corner of my eyes, waiting for the fun that I was fairly certain was about to come. Three, two, one… "Bon voyage, you super stud, you!" Ah, there it was.

I chuckled with good humor as Kazuto choked, grumbling to himself before saying, "Link start!" in a huff.

Let's follow his lead. "Link start." And then the world fell away.

When my eyes opened in the virtual world, I was standing with Kirito in the basement of the Governor's Office. "Ready to do this, Rythin?" he asked cautiously, as if still worried I was upset.

Well, I kinda was, but more at myself than at him. I should have known that everyone considered me a monster, even if I hadn't admitted it to myself. I was honestly surprised that the others tolerated me as much as they did; after all, humans want human friends, not monsters. "Let's blow them away," I hissed, cracking my knuckles. I got a few cracks, probably the few joints I hadn't gotten earlier. "They'll know our names and whisper them as though we were gods." Campy and over the top, but I needed to distract him somehow.

He chuckled uneasily, though some tension had eased from his shoulders. "I don't know if we should go that far... Remember, our primary goal is -"

"To get Death Gun to show us how he kills, yeah, yeah, I got it, I got it," I grumbled with a sigh. "Primary objective is to determine the actual name of Death Gun, secondary is to determine whether any of his in-game actions could cause death. I can spit out the rest of the orders too, if you want, but I'd rather not." The Bullet of Bullets location was right where we were, and I wasn't surprised to see a large crowd of people around each of the floating holographic screens. This really was a big tournament to these people? I wonder how they feel about two interlopers showing up and attempting to take the spot from the pros. Then I noticed the look so amazed it was almost able to be classified as awe most of the players were giving us as we waited for the battle to start. I guess we managed to impress them. "By the way, do you think we could set up a gambling pool? I mean, if you have any money left."

Kirito shrugged. "I don't know. I only have a little bit left. Besides, do they even let competitors vote?"

Hh... That's the sticking point isn't it? I blew air out of my mouth, absently tugging at the one patch of dark red hair. "That's the problem. And we don't have anyone we really know to place bets for us, do we..." I shrugged. "Eh, it was more or less just an idea." Speaking of ideas... "To warm up, wanna have a practice match?"

"Right here?" he asked, sounding a little surprised. I just grinned and drew my knife, running through a small pattern dance I had developed a while back to warm up my muscles. Kirito shot me a grin. "Sounds like fun."

I tapped at my menu, but it didn't really seem like it was possible to actually challenge players to duels. "Aw, this sucks," I growled, disappointed at my lack of fun to be had. "No duels in towns? Man..."

"Let's just go upstairs," Kirito suggested with a grin. "Maybe we can place some bets."

"Sounds like an idea," I said.

We rode the elevators up in silence; I leaned against the wall while Kirito folded his arms and tapped his feet impatiently. When the doors opened and we strode out, we were greeted by murmuring from several of the assembled players. I assumed they were for Kirito, so very calmly cracked my knuckles again. The players got the message and backed off slightly, giving me a respectable berth, though they still stared at Kirito.

As we walked forward, we noticed Sinon standing there. Kirito and I approached her, stopping just in front of the girl. "Kirito," she declared.

"Sinon," Kirito replied in kind.

I grinned and waved my hands in the air at about my chest level. "Rythin!" Jazz hands!

Sinon glanced at me, the obvious effort it took to hold back a snicker or chuckle counting as a win in my book. "I won't lose today," she announced, clenching a fist.

Kirito just grinned. "I won't either."

Fuck it, why not. "I'm throwing my hat in the ring here as well," I said with a small mocking bow to Sinon. More just an inclining of the head with my arm over my stomach in a mockery of a courtly bow, but it still got the point across. "My goal is to be the strongest in this game, and I won't let either of you stand in my way." Sinon glanced at me, and I wasn't sure what I saw in her eyes. Hate? Fear? Interest? Or maybe all three.

We stood there watching each other, the blue-haired girl very obviously not letting me get to her, and I grinned slightly. This was going to be a fun few hours.

* * *

 **Short chapter, but that can't really be helped; I didn't want to start the BoB right away, and this was the best starting point.**

 **Poor Nick, by the way. Or maybe poor Kazuto? I'm not really sure which of them has it harder, right now. Kazuto is freaking out because of the deaths, and he didn't think about what he was saying – or that Nick could hear it. Nick, on the other hand, has his lack of self-esteem making things worse, even if he cognitively knows that Kazuto wasn't thinking. Like he said, though, he refuses to doubt his family, and that's what's keeping him (relatively) sane.**

 **And by the way, Nick referring to Suguha as Sugu? Yeah, that was because sometime during the end of the summer and now, he started to care about her.**

 **Many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.**


	6. Bullet of Bullets

**Chapter 6: Bullet of Bullets**

* * *

 **December 14** **th** **, 2025**

After a few seconds of staring at us and not backing down, Sinon nodded subtly. I grinned slightly in response, accepting her challenge for later. She had a score to settle with both of us, Kirito more than me, and I was looking forward to seeing her try to collect.

Sinon moved away, and Kirito and I walked past her, my friend just slightly in front of me and to the right. It was a formation that we had settled on while training in Aincrad; I would take the rear, partially because of Future Step and partially because I just didn't feel comfortable with someone behind me. And with what he said to Aki... No. I gritted my teeth and forced myself to lower my heartbeat, taking a few deep breaths to calm myself. I will not doubt my family. I will never doubt the people I care about. They have my undying loyalty.

The two of us wandered for a while, eventually pausing on a bridge overlooking the city. I guess it had a pretty nice view, though everything looked the same what with it being dark and smoke-filled. Kirito stared out at the night sky without really seeing anything, his eyes distant, and I watched as his fist clenched. Probably thinking about Death Gun. I had confronted him too, and all I had managed to do was infuriate myself and lose control. Maybe next time I'll keep a cooler head and stay away. Then, as Kirito shifted, a lock of his hair fell down from its position tucked behind his ear, and I couldn't help but laugh quietly. "Oh, shut up, Rythin," Kirito grumbled, brushing the hair out of his face and back behind his ear with a grimace.

"I'm just continuously amazed you managed to get such a rare avatar," I said. "I mean, your appearance is definitely, ah... unique." Yeah, unique was a good word. It was a word that had a slightly higher likelihood of Kirito not wanting to kill me. "Hey," I said quietly. "Do you think you can do this?"

My friend didn't answer, instead just staring off into the distance again. "Do you need to restock?" Kirito asked, changing the subject. Probably a good idea, given what we were both dealing with. "I was going to stop by the Marketplace and get some more bullets."

I blinked, opening my inventory and scanning over the numbers of grenades I had left. "I should probably get a few more smoke grenades and flashbangs, though I think I'm good on frags." I glanced up at the clock hologram - we still had over an hour before the Bullet of Bullets started up. "Let's go."

After resupplying - and wandering the streets a bit - we stopped and watched one of the scrolling feeds that was displaying the names of the participants. "The first time Death Gun showed up," Kirito mused out loud as we both watched the names scroll, "was after the Second Bullet of Bullets."

My jaw parted slightly as I absently drank in the foul air, thinking hard. "And both people he killed were killed in front of witnesses. So, despite staying under the radar in-game since the last killing, he wants people to know he's here and out for blood." Typical Laughing Coffin modus operandi.

"He's probably been leveling up as much as possible," Kirito said. "There's nobody here registered as Death Gun, though. But if he wants to stage another murder..."

He trailed off, and I clicked my teeth once, as though I was biting something. "The Bullet of Bullets is the perfect stage. He'll be here, I guarantee it."

Kirito closed his eyes and lowered his head. "We have to find out the name of his avatar and stop him."

* * *

A half hour later, we returned to the Governor's Office to see Sinon standing by the kiosks again. I glanced at Kirito, and he shrugged. As we approached her, I could have sworn she stiffened slightly, glancing at us out of the corner of her eye, but she remained remarkably stoic. "Hey," Kirito said as he chose the next kiosk. Sinon didn't reply and just kept tapping at the screen. It changed, a large red warning box appearing on the screen, but I couldn't read it over her shoulder despite having several inches on the shorter girl. "Hey, Sinon?" Sinon kept tapping away. So Kirito leaned over slightly. "Hello, anyone home?" I started to laugh under my breath, snickering slightly. "C'mo-"

"Shut up!" Sinon snapped, finally reacting. I gave up trying to hide my amusement, and just chuckled as she whirled to glare at Kirito. "I thought I made it clear I was done talking. God, what else do you want from me?" She was, uh, feisty. Must be determined to kill us.

Kirito was probably not expecting that, because he looked surprised for a second before smiling uneasily. "Nothing!" Hah, finally a girl that doesn't immediately fall for your apparently magical charms. Except... The scene from their final match the day before played in my head, and I bared my teeth slightly in a small snarl. Literally everything with two X chromosomes. I swear. "But, now that you mention it, maybe we could swap some info before this starts?" Sinon glared at him, and he shrugged. "I mean..."

Sinon transferred her glare to me, and I just stared back impassively. "What's that look for?" I asked nonchalantly, as though the girl in front of me wasn't trying to bore a hole through my forehead with her eyes. "It's not like I had anything to do with this. You're the one that didn't check to see if he was a guy before stripping." Spots of red appeared on her cheeks, and I smirked slightly. If she was going to be angry at me, by the gods I was going to earn it.

"Like, you know, for old time's...sake?" Kirito asked, slowly trailing off at the end.

Sinon continued staring at us silently for a while, and I wondered if she was going to just turn around and walk away. That would certainly suck. Then she sighed, and Kirito and I shared a victorious grin. "Fine, whatever," she grumbled, placing her hands on her hips. So sassy. Kirito just chuckled weakly. "I'll do it, even though I'll be the one that's giving all the info," she muttered, walking away.

Kirito and I exchanged a glance before following her. "But... we got stuff to share, too," Kirito called out. "It's not a lot, but still..." he mumbled.

Sinon got into the elevators, and we followed her; after the short trip, the doors slid open and Kirito and I gasped in awe. The place was packed, people filling every seat in the basement and then more standing up and leaning along railings or sitting on the tables themselves. I saw one guy with what looked like a sphere interviewing another person, and I assumed another guy leaning back and chatting confidently about how it was going to be too late for anyone that saw him was one of the contestants. He had a cowboy hat, so it was definitely possible he was good at the game. Y'know, what with the better players having better equipment. It was the noise that hit me the hardest, though; after the relative silence of the elevator ride, the loud babble of voices on top of voices hit me like a brick wall. "This is crazy," Kirito gasped in awe. Not exactly the word I'd choose to describe it - maybe something like chaotic, or perhaps insane.

"Yeah," Sinon said with a sigh, "the final's like one big party." Kirito just made a noise of agreement, and I just tried not to twitch at every loud noise. We were standing on the outside ring, the highest part of the place - it was set up like the amphitheater back on the first floor of Aincrad, almost.

I could see a familiar face - or, to be more accurate, hear a familiar voice - standing on a table and hawking his wares. Apparently, the guy that tried to buy Kirito's avatar way back when we first entered the game fancied himself an info broker of sorts, offering 'top secret info on all the top players' for just 1000 credits. That was obviously bullshit, since he had no idea what Kirito or I were capable of. A few other people were either deciding what bets to place or finalizing their choices; one guy we passed apparently placed everything on Yamikaze, while another wondered out loud what the odds were on some guy named Yuka. Another guy with a cyborg eye was sitting on a table, calmly talking about how a Dyne was probably not going to do well despite his solid gear and good skills, since he was old. The guy with a cowboy hat reached over and tapped him on the shoulder, grinning; the cowboy was probably Dyne if the stutters was any indication.

We passed by their table as he was talking to cyborg-eye, and someone dressed in blue turned around. "Hey, look!" he said. "I-it's Kirito!" Hearing my friend's name, I turned to look at them carefully; they didn't seem to be anything important, and I doubted any of them were Death Gun, the way they were socializing. I mean, yeah, that's short-sighted, but c'mon, Death Gun was part of Laughing Coffin. They weren't the most stable bananas in the bunch, and that included talking to others. And as a preemptive shut up to my inner snark, hello pot, my name is kettle.

"She hacks up people good with that Photon Sword." Yep, definitely not Death Gun. Though it was still amusing the way people got his gender wrong. "Ooh, a hot berserker with a blade."

"Sinon's more my type, brother" another guy said, putting in his two cents. I just grinned. "I wouldn't mind getting a bullet from _her_."

"Roger that."

"I'd rather get slashed."

"Then go play ALO with the fairies."

It was kinda hard, listening to the conversations; the three people that were talking were sitting on a long table, just near the cyborg guy. I'm not really sure if I should say or do anything; Kirito hadn't asked me to intervene, so I decided to let them continue with their catcalling slash ribbing each other.

"Hey, who's that guy behind them?" Oh, that's me.

"I think that's Rythin. You know, the guy with the knife and grenades. He can dodge pretty much anything."

"He's nuts, you know that?"

"Still, he made it to the finals, so he's gotta be good." Yes, please, continue to sing my praises.

"The way he uses that knife... It's kinda hot."

Uh. Wait. Hold up. That last voice was male, and people definitely aren't going to mistake _my_ gender. I blinked, and Kirito snickered, glancing at me out of the corner of his eye. So I just casually reached forward and punched him in the shoulder. Kirito looked back at me with a grin on his face, and I realized a second too late that he was about to walk into someone. I opened my mouth to say something, but he bumped into a guy's arm before I could get a word out. What I wouldn't give to have his reflexes. Rubbing his head absently, Kirito smiled. "Oh, sorry." The players he had run into looked at him with irritation on their faces, but immediately gasped and jumped aside, ushering him through.

"You're Kirito," they stammered in unison. "S-s-sorry!"

Kirito walked through them while I took the long way around; he stopped after three steps, and I looked at him curiously. The two guys seemed to be shocked and a little bit frightened; had he really scared that many people with those sword skills? "Rythin, if you repeat one word of this to anyone in ALO, you're a dead man," Kirito muttered under his breath. I just grinned. No promises, buddy. "Hey guys?" Kirito said louder, slowly turning to face them with death in his eyes. I watched curiously as the two players cowered in fear. As he finished his turn, he struck a pose; one leg cocked back, one arm held away from the body and wrist pulled back, and the other hand waving. He even winked at them. "Hope y'all root for me," he said, far too cutely for any man. Jesus.

"Is that a page from Asuna's book?" I whispered under my breath, still staring at him in shock. It's like I can see the sparkles behind him. "...Dude. What. In the hell."

Every guy in view of him gasped in shock before starting to cheer for him. "Yeah, you got it! Good luck out there!"

"I bet my life savings on you!" Not a bad choice, though probably for the wrong reasons.

Sniggering, I turned to see Sinon watching from the corner of her eyes, arms folded. "Oh, God," she muttered. "Quit messing with them."

"If you're jealous," I said, "I'm sure you could get some supporters of your own. I mean, you, uh..." I just made a vague gesture with my hands. Fuck it, I'm already in the deep end, might as well try to sink. "I'm certain they'd love to vote for you. Maybe if you just gave them a smile and a wave? Then again, the ice queen thing seems to work for some of them." Sinon blushed slightly, and I looked up at the ceiling. "But, I'm pretty sure this qualifies as sexual harassment, so I think I'm going to forgo speaking rights for the next little bit, okay?"

"You do that," Sinon growled. Yep. She was pissed. Heh.

With twenty minutes left on the clock until we started trying to kill each other, the three of us grabbed a seat in a booth in the corner. Sinon occupied herself with selecting a drink, while Kirito took the opportunity to slide in to the booth and leave me some room. "Okay," he said. "Ahem. So, thirty players get dropped randomly across the same map, and then..." A loud and sudden sound made us both jump as the center of the table raised with a can. Probably the drink Sinon ordered. "And then you go around shooting anyone you find and the winner's the last one standing?" Kirito finished, awkwardly leaning around the raised bit.

Sinon glared at him for a second before just swiping the menu screen over to him. "Oh, man, knew it," she muttered. "You're going to make me explain the whole damn thing to you after all."

"That was the plan," I agreed without a shred of shame.

Sinon just grabbed her drink and sucked on the straw. "Don't you two have email? The admins sent the rules out, so it should be sitting in your inbox." I almost snorted; of course I'd seen it. I gave it a cursory once-over, enough to understand how things worked. But, Sinon had participated in the battle royale before - I think, I vaguely remember her telling us that at one point, though I might be hallucinating - and that meant she had practical knowledge that maybe wasn't in the rules.

"Yeah, I did scan through it, but..." Kirito tapped his drink selection and grinned weakly. "It's like, I wanted to make sure I understood. There was a lot of info to absorb."

I shrugged. "I read it, and I'm fairly certain I understand the mechanics of the match, but it's possible there's something I missed." I folded my hands in front of me. "Something like, oh, I don't know, information about the sniper's first shot being without a bullet line."

Sinon snorted. "Absorb." Kirito's drink showed up, and he looked at it carefully before sliding the menu to me. Let's see... water, lemonade, beer... Wait, did that say 'jet fuel'? It's gotta be a joke. Probably some fancy drink. "Basically, you pretty much got the gist of it. This thing's a battle royale between thirty players on the same map." My drink appeared, and I twitched involuntarily. I think I like ALO's method of delivering the drinks via an NPC waitress better. At least that one I could see coming. Curious, I poked at the can gingerly, as if it might explode. "Start points are random, and players are dropped about a thousand meters away from each other."

Wow. Little bigger than I expected. Kirito's eyes widened. "Woah, a thousand?" he gasped. I think then the map is at least... six kilometers square? And that's assuming a perfect grid-like distribution with people on all the edges, and so probably bigger than that. Assume the typical human preference for nice numbers in multiple of five and the map is probably ten kilometers square. "That's gotta be one insanely huge map."

"Honestly," Sinon sighed, "you didn't read the email, did you?" After poking the can a few more times, I decided it was probably not an explosive in disguise and took a sip carefully. Not bad lemonade. Maybe I should get a smoothie next time; it's kinda hot down here with all the people. "It's a multi-stage arena. Ten kilometers in diameter." Hey, I'm pretty good. "It's got mountains, forests, and deserts. The start time's afternoon, so there's no advantage or disadvantage in terms of gear or skills." Not like that mattered, since I was sticking with my knife either way.

"How can you find anyone in a field that big?" Kirito asked.

"Luck," I snarked. "Good and or bad."

Sinon glanced at me. "That makes it challenging. It's a game of gunfights, remember?" Heh. Not the way Kirito and I played. "Anyway, players get an item to track other players. It's called the Satellite Scan Terminal."

Kirito blinked. "There's a satellite? Like a spy drone or something?"

"Yep," Sinon said. "It works just like in real life. It passes overhead every fifteen minutes."

I frowned. "So if it works like in real life, there's got to be some blind spots, right?"

Sinon shrugged. "Not that I know of." That can't be right. There has to be something. "It scans the arena, and then transmits the data directly to your terminal. Neat, huh?"

Kirito made a noise that I recognized to mean 'I'm not sure'. "So basically, you can only hide in one spot for fifteen minutes." What if you wanted people to come to you, though? If you stayed there, you'd know they had to be coming for you eventually.

"You catch on quick," Sinon almost purred, approvingly.

I smirked. "Wouldn't a sniper be at a disadvantage? After all, you'd have to move around quite a bit."

"Fifteen minutes is more than enough time for a sniper to do their job," she retorted, matching my smirk. "I fire, I kill my target, I move on." The badass statement was kinda ruined when she put the straw to her mouth and sipped.

"Oh. Yeah, I guess," Kirito mumbled.

Sinon sat her drink down. "So, we good here?" Not waiting for an answer, she nodded and stood up. "Great. Next time we see each other, you can bet your ass -"

"No, wait!" Kirito exclaimed, panicking and reaching out to grab her. "Hold up, hold up!" He managed to get the end of her scarf, knocking over his drink in the process. I hissed in displeasure and moved away from the spill, glaring at him slightly.

Silently, Sinon glanced at her wrist; probably looking at the time. Either that or trying to decide if it was worth trying to kill Kirito. One of the two. "Is there something else?" Kirito nodded hurriedly, still not letting go of her scarf.

"It's what we're really here to ask," I said, eyes still half-hooded but focused. Sinon looked at me for a second, before taking a deep breath and sighing. Kirito smiled happily and let go, straightening up as Sinon sat down and nodded at us to talk. Kirito swiped open his menu, and I leaned forward. "Out of all the competitors present here today, we were hoping you could tell us which ones are first-timers with names you don't recognize." If Death Gun didn't show up until after the second BoB, and he wanted to kill, he'd be in this one, but he wouldn't have been in previous ones. And if he was someone lying low, it would be fairly likely that most people wouldn't know who he was.

Kirito sent the list over to her, and Sinon looked at us. "Okay, that's weird."

"Please," Kirito said. "Just look at it and tell us. It's important."

Sinon looked away for a second before turning back and scrolling through the list. "Well, if that's all you want to know, I guess it's cool..." she muttered. Kirito and I watched her intently. "The first-timers I don't know... Besides a certain pair of losers with a photon sword and knife respectively, there are three names."

Three. We'd narrowed it down to just those three people out of everyone that played this stupid game. "That's great!" Kirito exclaimed. "Who? Point 'em out!" He slid over next to Sinon and stared at the screen, disregarding the way she looked a little confused at his vehemence.

"Juushi X..."

I glanced over and realized she was staring at the name of the person that had defeated me. "Musketeer X," I corrected absently.

Sinon just rolled her eyes. "Musketeer X, Pale Rider, and..." She pointed at the screen. "This guy. Sterben." Kirito and I exchanged a glance, both thinking the same thing. Was one of them Death Gun? Or were we just barking up the wrong tree entirely? Our line of reasoning revolved around the thought that Death Gun was going to be in the tournament, but what if he wasn't? He'd killed someone by just shooting their image, right? "You gonna tell me what this is about, or are you gonna keep me in the dark?" Kirito just made a non-committal sound and shifted away from her. Sinon wasn't impressed, though, and if the rhythmic tapping of her finger was any indication whatever good mood she had been in previously was swiftly running out. Kirito and I exchanged another glance, and Sinon frowned. "Gettin' ready to blow a fuse over here," she growled.

"Ehh..." Kirito mumbled.

"Speak up!" Sinon snapped. "I swear, if you're trying to make me mess up today by pissing me off, I'm gonna -"

"Nothing of the sort, Sinon," I said calmly, cutting through her anger. "It's just..." I looked over to where Kirito was sitting, staring at his fists. They were clenched and trembling.

"Does it have anything to do with why you were acting weird yesterday?" Sinon asked. "Y'know, after the prelims?" She almost sounded concerned for Kirito.

Kirito looked at her, sucking in a breath, and I finally fixed Sinon with my gaze, eyes fully open. After a second, Kirito looked down. "Yeah," he mumbled. "It does. Yesterday, this person I once played against in another VRMMO came up to me. I'm pretty sure one of the names you pointed out is him."

"Is he a friend of yours?" Sinon asked.

Kirito shook his head. "No. An enemy. I can't remember his name, though. And... I think we tried to kill each other."

Sinon gasped slightly. "Kill each other? For real? Was it... like an argument with someone in your party? Something like that?"

"No," I said, shaking my head. "Not an argument. Killing someone over an argument is pointless and actively detrimental." I stared off into space; I could see the tattoo on his arm easily. "The group that man belongs..." I grimaced slightly before correcting myself. "... _belonged_ to, rather, provided a service. Hired murderers, assassins, poisoners, things like that. But they were becoming a nuisance, and so to stop them I masterminded an attempt to eradicate their group entirely." I glanced at Kirito. "It required force, and Kirito participated in it."

"I don't regret what I did," Kirito said. "But still..." He clasped his hands together, most likely in an attempt to make them stop shaking. "I've avoided taking responsibility for it. I forced myself to forget it even happened." He fell silent, and then looked up at Sinon. "For me, there's no more running away! And this time, I have to face what I did head on." Sinon didn't say anything, and Kirito smiled grimly. "Sorry for unloading like that. Just forget it."

"Do you think you could still pull the trigger, though?"

I stared at Sinon; I'd never heard her say something in that tone of voice before. Her eyes were firm, and she stared at Kirito. "Could you shoot a player in here, if you knew in the real world that player would die from it? And what if you had to kill that player? Because if you didn't you or someone you love would die." Kirito gasped, a swift intake of breath. "If you had that power, could you still pull that trigger?" Sinon sighed. "That's what you said to me yesterday," she said, and her voice was back to normal. Then she took a deep breath. "Kirito, Rythin, what's the name of the game you met this guy in?" Ah. She'd figured it out. I just smiled slightly and brought my index finger to my lips, tapping them a few times. We won't confirm or deny it, but you're right, Sinon. "Sorry," she said after a second. "That's personal."

"No, it's okay," Kirito said.

Sinon clenched a fist. "Kirito." He looked at her, and she looked back, her eyes shining. "I..." Then she looked down. Lost her nerve, maybe?

"Sinon?"

We watched her, but eventually she just sighed. "We should start heading over to the waiting dome now," she said. "We have to check our gear. And get ourselves psyched up for this battle."

Kirito blinked, obviously still a little confused. "O-okay, yeah, sure. Lead the way."

We followed her to an elevator and took it down to the 20th floor. Sinon slumped against one wall, arms folded, and I did the same on the other. Kirito just stood by the panel, staring at the display as it updated every few seconds with our new floor. "I get you've got your reasons for being her, just like me," Sinon said suddenly, pushing herself off the wall. Striding over to Kirito, she made a finger gun and pressed her index finger against the small of his back. "But, it's got nothing to do with that promise you made. I gotta pay you back for what happened in yesterday's final. Got it? You owe me a fight, so you better stay alive."

Kirito inclined his head, but didn't turn around. "Roger that. I promise I'll survive and give you the fight you want."

Sinon withdrew slightly, letting her arm fall to her side. "Thanks," she said quietly. Kirito turned, obviously surprised, and I managed to restrain myself to just raising a single eyebrow. Before he could say anything, though the doors slid open and we walked out. Kirito and I followed Sinon to a pair of rooms, one for men and one for women. I was about to enter our room when Sinon caught my arm. "What did you mean by what you said yesterday?" she hissed quietly.

I gave Kirito a nod, and he entered the room, leaving the two of us outside. "When I said that strength gained in here won't be strength out there?"

Sinon's grip tightened. "What do you know," she spat. "You're strong, as strong as Kirito. You don't need to worry about gaining strength."

I almost laughed in her face, but I somehow managed to keep it to a grim shake of my head. "Let's just say that I wasn't always like this," I said quietly, not looking at the woman holding my arm in a vice grip. Normally, I would have had words with her about touching me, but this was anything but normal. "I used to think the same thing as you, once. When I started playing the game with Kirito." I felt my lips pull back in a poor approximation of a smile. "Take my word for it, Sinon. It doesn't transfer over like just putting on a mask." It had taken me what, a year to realize that? A year and a mental breakdown.

"You're lying." I looked at her, and I realized Sinon was trembling. "You have to be lying. Otherwise what's the point?" I just gently shook her off and walked in to the dressing room, leaving the girl behind me. I almost wished I could do more to help her, but I really couldn't. This was one of those things that people had to work out on their own. Either she'd figure it out and gain her own kind of strength, or she wouldn't.

Kirito was standing against the wall, and he looked like he wanted to ask me something, but I just shook my head. Respecting the privacy, he relaxed slightly and leaned back. I took a seat next to him on the slightly slanted piece of metal jutting out. It was a little uncomfortable, but I'd live. He nodded over to a screen on the wall, and I looked; it was showing the MMO Stream. I recognized it; it was the show that XeXeeD had been on when he died. The host was some blond girl with some sort of cat ears; she almost looked like she could be a Cait Sith, just without the tail. "If you're a battle junkie who loves the smell of gun oil and gun smoke, then get ready!" she chirped. "Place your bets, because we're about to start!" That reminded me; I opened the menu and looked. Apparently between the two of us I had the lower odds, so I placed some money on myself. It wasn't like any of this was money I'd spent personally, so anything I made was profit. "Now, are you ready to find out who's the strongest player in Gun Gale Online?" the announcer streamcaster lady said, waving her hand as some screenshots appeared behind her. They were uniformly brown. Small wonder I preferred Alfheim. "The hardest game in town?" We could hear faint cheering from outside the waiting room, and I felt my muscles tense in automatic response. "As usual, MMO Stream will be broadcasting the battle live and uncensored!" Uncensored as opposed to what? Covering up breasts? It wasn't like there were... Oh, right, Musketeer X. Her outfit was probably barely considered an outfit.

Kirito looked to the side, and I realized he was thinking about Sinon. Eh, she'd be fine. "Alright," the announcer said, "help me out with the countdown, guys! Ten! Nine! Eight! Seven!" I cracked my knuckles, one at a time, before curling my hands into fists. "Six! Five! Four!" Kirito looked up, solemn. "Three! Two!" I smirked with mad bloodlust. "One!"

And then we were blinded by light as we were all transported to different areas of the map.

When my vision cleared I grinned; I was in a forest. Excellent. That was good news for me. Immediately, I started moving; it didn't really matter which direction I went, so long as I kept moving. In this forest, there was no way anyone could get a bead on me easily without me knowing, and I was more than prepared to fight in a forest. That biome was fairly prevalent in Aincrad, despite the variety of the floors, and so I knew exactly what to do.

A branch cracked underfoot and my knife appeared in my hand without seeming to cross the intervening distance; suddenly bullet lines streaked across my vision, and I moved. This was the finals, and my opponents wouldn't be able to read anything about my fighting style before I killed them, so I could go all out. I leapt into the air and grabbed a branch, avoiding the first burst of bullets. The lines tracked me, so he was definitely using something with a rapidfire setting. I swung around the branch and jumped toward the nearest tree. I landed on the trunk and pushed off immediately, gaining a little bit more height and landing lightly on a branch. Racing down the length of my temporary platform, I twisted and jumped just as a hail of bullets shredded the place where I had been, the branch falling to the ground with a crash behind me. I slithered around a tree, moving through the forest like it was solid ground, ensuring I stayed a few steps ahead of the bullets at all times. I was like a snake slithering through the grass and he couldn't get a good bead on me before I was already moving, the red lines of his gun like a siren and a flashing neon sign saying 'Dodge this!' It couldn't be any easier if there was a literal button prompt to dodge.

Plunging through the forest at breakneck speeds, I spotted my opponent - a guy with a helmet and a metal breastplate – and my lips twisted into a cruel smirk. Got you now. I lunged over him and landed just behind him; he whirled to face me, and just as the bullet line was about to reach my forehead I swerved, lunging toward and just past him. As I passed, his gun firing with a loud bang, I sliced out with my dagger, cutting into his side and enjoying the slight feeling of resistance. I followed through the strike, tucking into a roll until I passed him and then sprung backwards, slamming my feet into his back. All of my weight suddenly thrown at his center of gravity, he stumbled forward and I twisted, briefly using my hand to turn before landing on my feet with a light thump and stabbing him through the chest. A second later, the four frag grenades I had dropped earlier exploded at point-blank range, peppering him with shrapnel. I was safe, using him as a human shield.

Once the dust settled I pulled my dagger free, and he slumped to the ground like a marionette with its strings cut, falling face-first into the dirt. A second later, a red hologram appeared over his body, announcing that he was dead. I licked my lips and smirked, moving away. The explosion would probably attract people to the location, and I didn't want to be caught off guard.

Right, let's see; I need to breath for a second. I reached the edge of the forest and swung up into the trees, balancing for a second before wedging myself into a crook in the branches that looked out over the Lost City just a few steps to my west. Let's see... I glanced overhead and figured it had to be at least fifteen minutes since we had started, so pulled out the Satellite Scan Terminal. The screen lit up, and several dots appeared; mine was tinted green, and several others - including one near my position - were moving around. Some others were darkened, one of them right next to my position. "Dead players are darkened, it seems," I mused out loud. "How many have died already?" I did a quick count by twos and blinked. "Seven, huh? That leaves twenty-three people." Then I counted the lit dots out of habit, and frowned. "I'm only counting twenty-two people. Why am I counting only twenty-two people?" Ah. It is possible to hide from the satellite after all. Either way, Kirito was probably still alive.

"And so who's coming by to say hello..." I tapped the dot. "Raiden, is it? Shall we have -" The hologram terminal beeped, and the dots started blinking. "So time's up, huh?" I mused. "Well, that just means I can run away with impunity. Later, Raiden." There were two dots, fairly far apart, as well as a dead player and one staying stationary down at the southwest of the map. Another dot was looking over the south bridge, while two others approached it from the other side. I tapped the moving dots, and smiled. One was Pale Rider - one of the three names to look out for. Guess I'm heading southwest.

Jumping out of the trees, I raced towards the south. I needed to hook around whoever was waiting in the little bit that jutted out. Keeping the Lost City on my right, I moved quickly along the edge of the forest. _Here, on the edge of the forest_ , I sang softly, _you asked me to stay..._ It was a good song. A bit inappropriate, given that I was currently trying to kill twenty-nine other people, but whatever. I might have also been a bit off-key, but I didn't have my instruments with me so I couldn't be held accountable. I'm better at matching pitch than generating it anyway. In the distance I could see the bridge, so I started veering west; I needed to reach that bridge at some point. Or, maybe... I grinned and increased my speed, racing through the forest by using trees and whatever else could help me as part of my path. It was just like running in Alfheim. Jump, swing, jump off and land in a roll only to leap over a root.

I burst from the tree line and didn't hesitate when the cliff edge loomed in front of me. I just jumped and dove forward, plunging into the deep water. Shit, that's cold. Why can't they ever simulate the feeling of hot springs? No, it always has to be nice, cold river water. Jerks. As I reached the other side, I realized I had miscalculated just a tiny little bit. Well, a lot little bit - I needed to get out, but there was no good place to scale the sheer cliff looming in front of me. Probably why most people didn't swim. I swam upstream a bit, grumbling at the way my clothes dragged me down. Maybe I should have stripped first. Eventually I found a spot where the cliff was a little bit pitted and started climbing; the sharp and wet rock bit into my palm, but the fingerless gloves managed to save me for most of it. When I reached the top hoisted myself up and over with a stylish flip and kept moving. I needed to find a good spot... Ah, there we are. A large boulder outcropping that was going to give me a good view of the bridge. I circled around back and was surprised to run into Kirito. "Yo," I called out quietly, and he whirled, sword at the ready, only to lower it when he realized it was just me. "Looking for Pale Rider."

"Yeah," he said. "Also, I think Sinon's up there already." I just shrugged; I'd been moving, so if the satellite passed overhead I hadn't noticed. "Let's go."

We approached the spot that Sinon had chosen for her sniping position, and she was looking through her scope, watching the bridge. Her finger tightened around the trigger, and then she must have sensed something - if anything, it would have been the small urge to kill her I experienced and then mastered as a matter of course. "Who's there?" she gasped, rolling to her right while drawing her handgun and pointing it at us.

I was already moving, faster than Kirito, and I reached her first. I slapped aside the gun and immediately after that Kirito knocked her down, straddling her with his hands grasping her upper arms. Somehow, she didn't shriek. "Shh!" Kirito hissed.

"Shout and I will kill you, regardless of what you and Kirito promised." I whispered. "We need you to be quiet, understand?" She nodded. "Good. We need a favor."

Sinon glared. "Are you kidding? It's too late for any more favors! One of us dies right now!" She tried to point the gun at Kirito, and I calmly placed a boot over her wrist, preventing her from getting the muzzle anywhere near us. Beaten, she sighed and relaxed, letting her hand fall limp; I nodded and moved my foot off of Sinon. There's no more danger here - unless she wants to blow all of us up at the same time.

"Stop it!" Kirito hissed. "I don't want those guys to know we're here!" I crouched down beside Sinon glanced over the edge of the rock; Dyne was the guy with the cowboy hat, if I recall correctly, so he was the one crouched at the edge of the bridge, waiting for Pale Rider.

"What are you up to?" Sinon growled, glaring at us both.

Kirito didn't look at her. "I wanna watch what happens on that bridge. So be quiet, okay?"

"Okay," Sinon spat, "then what?"

I shrugged. "Depends on what happens. If one thing happens, we do something. If another thing happens, we do something else. Either way, we have no interest in you. After this, I get the hell out of Dodge. Pinky promise." I couldn't speak for Kirito, naturally, but he agreed with me, assuring Sinon he'd leave once we saw Pale Rider in action.

"The minute you turn your back, I'll blow you away," Sinon declared. So feisty! I was actually kinda glad she wasn't Death Gun.

Kirito sighed. "If that's what you want then fine. But for now, just stay quiet." He returned to watching the bridge, and I continued examining Sinon's gun. It looked like just a regular pistol with an extra-large magazine.

"Alright," Sinon agreed grudgingly. "But after they're done down there it's you and me, Kirito." Hey, I'm not complaining. I just got to take out the victor when they were tired. I glanced at Kirito, and he just smirked; he knew exactly what I was thinking, and didn't fault me for it.

"Okay," Kirito muttered, obviously tired of this. Sinon stared at him for a second, and I was sure I saw her eyes shining. After Sinon fully relaxed, he hopped off of her, sliding to the left and drawing a pair of binoculars from his belt.

Sinon sat up and glanced at her pistol; I waited slightly to see if she was going to do anything, but she just holstered it instead. "Your stealth skills are pretty pathetic," she muttered, turning back to her sniper rifle. Of course, whatever you say – I know I didn't make a sound. "I'm not letting them leave the area alive," she told us, and her voice brooked no opposition. "If he makes a move I'm taking the shot."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," I muttered. "I get it, you're a badass sniper lady. Now can you calm yourself for just a bit?" Was I this bad when I got my bloodlust up? I really hoped I wasn't.

"He's all yours," Kirito told Sinon absently. Our goal wasn't to kill people, it was to locate Death Gun. Then he stiffened. "Wait. Company."

I had no means of seeing long distance, so I just made two circles with my hands and held them up to my eyes as though they were binoculars. "Details?" I asked the two that actually could see.

"Tall. Blue and white camo outfit, full face mask," Sinon reported. "Carrying an ArmaLite AR-17. No other obvious equipment." She frowned, eye still glued to her scope. "He's running light." So what? So did I. Of course, that could mean he fought like me.

"Binoculars, Kirito?" My friend handed them to me, and I examined the scene, taking in the man for myself. Yeah, that's pretty much how Sinon described him. Thanks to the girl forgetting that the two of us were gun illiterates, she didn't actually explain that that ArmaLite thing was, but from what I could tell it looked kinda like a hunting rifle.

There was a burst of gunfire from the near end of the bridge, and Pale Rider just moved out of the way; he cartwheeled to the left and landed moving, already jumping to grab one of the cords on the edge of the bridge. He swung himself around and jumped, soaring through the air and avoiding Dyne's gunfire easily. He swung around the top part of the bridge and landed on top. "Woah, he's fast!" Sinon gasped.

I just shrugged. "I'm faster." And moving in three dimensions was nothing special. Still, without a good way to change directions in midair he should probably stick to the acrobatics on the ground. Jumping just made yourself an easy target if they knew how much to lead you.

Hm, maybe I should curb my arrogance. Musketeer X gave a rather painful lesson about that yesterday.

Pale Rider raced down the metal line and Dyne stood up to fire; when he squeezed the trigger, though, Pale Rider was already jumping across to the other side. His acrobatics were rather impressive, as he grabbed one of the cords and swung around, launching himself back to the other side. If I didn't have the ability to dodge bullets because of Future Step, that was more or less exactly how I'd approach someone like Dyne. And had, in the past.

Pale Rider landed on the ground already shifting into a cartwheel, flipping off of one hand and barely touching the ground before jumping and flipping in midair. It was all rather impressive. Almost exactly how I fought, really. Had he been watching me? No, if he was fighting this comfortably he would already have been training like this. My eyes gleamed. Finally, one of these people was a challenge to figure out.

Still, he was rather straightforward. As Dyne stood up to fire, Pale Rider hit the ground at a slide on his stomach and let the bullets just pass right over him. Yeah, he was good, but he didn't have my ability to just weave through the bullets; if he did, he would have reached Dyne by now. As the bullet storm finished, he pushed off the ground and flipped to his feet, racing towards his opponent. Dyne growled something and dropped the spent magazine, pulling another one out.

That brief moment was enough to spell his doom, though, because Pale Rider pointed the long gun he had been carrying and pulled the trigger. A spray of bullets made me realize that it was a shotgun, not a rifle - several bullets hit Dyne in the chest and he dropped the magazine he was going to reload with. He pointed his gun and Pale Rider was there, moving inside his range and pressing the barrel of his gun against Dyne's stomach. There was a brief moment of silence before Pale Rider pulled the trigger.

Dyne staggered back and slumped to his knees as Pale Rider reloaded and pointed his gun at Dyne's forehead. They were frozen like that for a second, and then Pale Rider pulled the trigger. When I saw the icon appear over Dyne's body, I tossed the binoculars back to Kirito and rested against the cliff. "If only he had time to finish switching mags," Sinon said. "He could have shot from the hip and killed him easy."

"He's quick," Kirito said, eyes wide. "And powerful. Maybe he's the one in the cloak."

Sinon looked at Kirito, and I shook my head. "He's not our guy," I said. "Welp."

"How can you be sure?" Kirito asked, studying him through the binoculars.

"One, he doesn't have that gas mask. Two, he doesn't have that cloak." I knew they were spurious reasons at best, and continued, not letting Kirito say anything else. "Three, he doesn't have the pistol. If he did, we would see it."

Kirito hummed in thought. "I guess."

Sinon turned back to the matter at hand, pressing her eye to her scope. "I'm taking him out," she said finally.

"Okay," Kirito said. "But it won't be easy if he's who I think."

Sinon snorted. "Oh, please. He can't dodge my bullet at this range."

I growled, deep in the back of my throat. "Stupid cheating snipers and their no bullet line," I grumbled.

"Suck it up."

I stuck my tongue out at her. "Nyeh."

Then both Kirito and Sinon gasped, and I whirled to look; Pale Rider was on his back twitching, and the bridge was – except for Dyne's dead body – empty otherwise. "What happened?"

Kirito shook his head. "I don't know. Pale Rider just turned and then flew back. There was a small crackle of electricity."

Sinon inhaled slightly before raising her hand for silence. We listened carefully, but all I could hear was the blowing of the wind and the rushing water. "Did you hear a gunshot?" she murmured.

"There wasn't one," Kirito murmured. "The hell's going on?" I wish I knew; things were going off script, and that was bad news for us. I tensed slightly as my heartbeat started to increase.

"Two possibilities," Sinon said. "It could have been a laser rifle with a muffled blast, or maybe a live ammo gun with a silencer."

I frowned, letting the possibilities play out in my mind's eye. "Which one would explain the electricity Kirito thinks he saw?" Sinon just shrugged, and I groaned. "Yeah, that's useful. Thanks."

"Either way," Sinon said, putting her eye to her rifle's scope again. "It wasn't a killshot." He was still alive? Why would someone go to the trouble of getting a sneak attack with a silenced weapon, only to not kill your opponent? That made absolutely no sense. I blinked - unless you wanted to kill your opponent some other way. "So why isn't he moving?"

"Kirito," I hissed. "I'm getting a bad feeling. Look around, see if there's anyone else here."

He nodded. "I think the shot came from the forest, though," he told me.

"Uh-uh," Sinon shook her head. "He was sniped from further away than that. I did a scan of the map not too long ago, and there's no one within one kilometer of here." Were sniper rifles even accurate from that far away? I wasn't sure, since I wasn't the sniper. Then Sinon blinked and moved away from her scope, looking at us. "And now that we're on the subject," she said, eyes darting back and forth between me and Kirito. "You mind telling me where you two came from?"

"Uh..." Kirito mumbled. "I was chasing after that Pale Rider guy."

I shrugged. "I was in the forest before coming over here."

Sinon blinked. "Wait, so how did you cross over here without me seeing you? I've been waiting here covering the bridge for a while."

"I swam," I told her, and she turned to stare at me. "What? It's not like it was actually water or anything."

Sinon frowned. "But you weren't on the map."

Kirito gasped. "Oh, no way!" Wait, what did he just figure out?

"What's up?" Sinon asked.

"When the satellite was scanning the area, I think Rythin and I were swimming in that river." Oh, cool, so Kirito had been taking a swim as well. We must have climbed out at different areas; his Acrobatics skill wasn't as high as mine, so he probably didn't climb up the cliff. "I guess our locations didn't register on the map because we were underwater."

"Swimming?" Sinon asked. "In all your gear? You should have drowned!" I didn't have any problems. But then again, I was swimming light. Maybe Kirito was having more issues, what with all the crap he was carrying.

"Nah, I took it all off before I dove in, stuffed it in my item storage" Kirito said nonchalantly.

I blinked. "Er, Kirito, because of that statement, one of two possibilities has occurred. You know that, right?" He should really think these things through.

"What are you talking about?"

I raised a finger. "One, people saw you getting undressed." He flushed, and I shook my head. "You forgot this is being televised, didn't you? I wonder what the others think about that..." I'm certain that the ladies are watching the tournament – and Klein too; he and Kirito are pretty close bros. I grinned, ignoring the thought to get back to my main point, and raised my second finger. "Two, people just heard you say that you swam naked and are now actually imagining you naked - in that body." Kirito blanched. "Yeah." I guess third was that nobody'd seen him, but that wouldn't be as funny to point out.

Sinon just looked at both of us with a strange look on her face before shaking her head. "I never knew we could use the river as cover from the satellite," she said, a strange tone to her voice. Maybe she was in the second camp? I just barely managed to avoid barking with laughter at the thought. "Thanks for the tip. I'll keep it in mind."

"Sinon," Kirito said, and his voice was solemn. No more time for joking, back to work. "Check in his shoulder, there's a strange light."

Sinon put her eye to her scope and a few seconds later gasped. "A stun bullet..."

Suddenly Kirito gasped and straightened up. "Look!" he exclaimed, pointing. I followed his finger and felt my blood run cold - there was a cloaked figure, a cloaked figure with glowing red eyes.

We'd found him. Death Gun was here. My lips pulled back, baring my eyeteeth, and my heartbeat started to race, the bloodlust raging just a hairsbreadth from being out of control.

"How long have we missed him?" I asked, my voice strangled. I was observant - he wouldn't have been able to walk across the bridge without my noticing, and just him moving into position alone should have caught my eye. No, something's wrong. I was watching the bridge, and even when fucking with Kirito my reflexes were on the 'hair-trigger' setting. Just like back in Aincrad. So how in the seven hells had Death Gun managed to not only get to that spot without me seeing anything, but most likely shoot Pale Rider?

Death Gun walked forward, and the right side of his cloak flapped in in the wind to reveal the long barrel of a rifle. "He's got a Silent Assassin," Sinon gasped, eyes wide.

"Mind sharing with the rest of the class, Sinon?" I asked, staring at our target and not letting another detail slip by me. "You know, to explain things to those of us that don't have a gun fetish?" Sinon didn't react, and I sighed. Damn, and here I thought she was more vulnerable to jokes like that. Maybe I should just back off her for a bit, let her defenses reset themselves. It would be a shame for her to be hardened to me already; her reaction every time I insinuated that she was cute was remarkably amusing.

"That's what his rifle's called," Sinon said. "It's a high-end sniper rifle that's got a badass silencer on it. I heard rumors about there being one in GGO, but... I've never seen it before."

"Weapon envy?" I asked dryly. "Don't worry, it happens to guys all the time."

Sinon just snorted at my off-color joke. "I'm sure you'd know, Rythin."

"That's…" I stared at her, briefly stunned, before laughing in glee. "That's amazing! Sinon, you've got quite the barbed tongue." Shaking his head at both her comment and my reaction, Kirito was still busy looking through his binoculars, a small grin on his face. "So, Sinon, what's so special about him having a Silent Whatsit?"

"If he can handle that gun," she murmured, "he must be some player." You don't know the half of it. Death Gun stopped by the paralyzed Pale Rider and slowly reached behind him to pull out a small pistol. I whirled to stare at Kirito, meeting his gaze. Shit, this was bad. If he pulled that trigger and shot Pale Rider... Actually, that might be useful. If he killed, we might be able to figure out just how it worked. But looking at Kirito, I knew he'd never go along with that idea. People meant something to him, something they didn't to me. So let's just scratch that off the list of ideas. "Why would he use his handgun to finish him off?"

Down by the bridge, Death Gun slowly rose his hand up to his forehead, before lowering it to his chest. Then to his left shoulder, across to his right. My eyes widened - he was crossing himself. So our killer was Christian, eh? "Sinon, shoot!" Kirito said.

"Huh?" Sinon asked. "Which one?"

"It's the guy in the cloak!" Kirito exclaimed, whirling to stare at her in panic. "There's no time, shoot him! Hurry! Don't let him fire that gun!"

Death Gun finished crossing himself, and I watched with interest. The killshot was about to happen.

* * *

 **Rythin really doesn't care about whether or not Pale Rider dies. Kirito, however, does, so Rythin's not going to press the point.**

 **Song he was singing while running:** _ **On the Edge of the Forest**_ **by Mercedes Lackey. It's a love song. That's he's singing in a warzone.**

 **Many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.**

 **In other news, I'm now officially one year older. Hooray, I guess.**

* * *

 **Omake: Sounding Familiar (2)**

Sinon was lining up her shot calmly, staring at Dyne's back as he prepared his own ambush. "Forgot to watch your back, Dyne," she sighed. "Maybe you'll learn your lesson next time." She was about to pull the trigger when she felt something behind her – it was like someone was about to kill her. She whirled around, drawing her gun and preparing to fire in one smooth motion.

Just as she was about to pull the trigger, though, a blur in red struck her hand, squeezing her wrist hard enough to make her gasp in shock. She wasn't able to pull the trigger, and a split second later a black blur slammed into her, knocking her over. After recovering from her disorientation, she realized Kirito was straddling her, Rythin watching from a few steps away. She glared, but Kirito hissed, "Shh!"

"If you could stay quiet, cannibal baby-eating elf, that's just fine," Rythin said.

Sinon blinked, completely confused. "What?"

"I. Hear. A. Sound."

Sinon had no idea what the brown-haired boy was babbling about. She didn't seem to be the only one, but Kirito was taking it more in stride. "Your friend's completely insane, isn't he?" she asked the far-too-pretty boy.

"Yeah…" Kirito sighed.

 **Maybe a little more obscure than the last one. Go for it! My suggestion is just searching for the, ah, 'descriptor' Rythin used.**


	7. Death Gun

**Chapter 7: Death Gun**

* * *

 **December 14** **th** **, 2025**

"Incoming!" Klein shouted as the purple lizard monster roared.

I scattered with the rest of the party; dodging to the side, I cartwheeled away and sprung into the air, flipping a few times before landing in the marshy ground and skidding away. My brown cloak flapped and my hood fell back, but that was only a minor thought as I went back over what I had learned about this monster. Let's see... Spawn rates, that's useless since there's already one here, drop rates, we don't care, attack patterns, that's what we need! "Klein, it's most likely an overhead attack!" I shouted, proven right as a second later the monster turned and tried to slam the Salamander with its tail.

A tremendous splash clouded my view as water and muck sprayed out, and Silica whirled. "Oh my gosh, Klein, are you okay?" the young Cait Sith called out, Pina clinging to her sleeve with her teeth.

The water cleared and I could see Klein standing there, gripping the massive tail with both hands. He laughed breathlessly. "C'mon, guys, what are you waiting for, an invitation?" he grunted.

"He's being extra manly today," Lisbeth observed with a skeptical look on her face as she passed by.

"Yeah, tell me about," Leafa said with a laugh. Well, it was probably because he was busy fighting the monster with five other ladies, only two of which were taken. Though, given Silica's age and Liz's crush on Kazuto, that really only left Leafa to impress, and since she was Kazuto's sister, well, Klein was having no luck today.

"Hang on, Klein, we're coming!" Yui called.

"Take your time, ladies."

As soon as Klein said that, though, I remembered something troubling. "Klein, you might want to be careful," I called. I'll even give this information to him for free, since they've already said I got a portion of the money from the mobs.

"Why's that, Argo?" he grunted. Then he was thrown off-balance as the tail squirmed in his grasp. "Oh crap!" He looked up to see the lizard staring at him, unimpressed. As it opened its mouth to breathe a green gas at him, the end of the tail wrapped around Klein's neck, holding him in place.

"Because it has a poison breath," I said belatedly.

"Agh!" he exclaimed. "Poison gas! You couldn't have said something sooner?!"

"Just hold your breath and quit whining," I snapped. The gas was heavier than whatever mixture of oxygen and other trace elements made up this air, so it sank to the ground. That left the lizard's back open and I took to the air, purple wings snapping open as I leapt. I lined myself up and dropped, slamming my wrist-mounted blades into its back. They sank into its flesh slightly, and the lizard squirmed in pain; still, despite cutting off its source there was enough gas around him that Klein would have to be healed by Asuna. The blades slicing through the weaker outer skin as I danced back to my feet with a graceful spin.

"Asuna!" the rough-looking samurai called, looking over his shoulder. What was going on with the girl, anyway? She should have been healing him. Soaring into the air to avoid being afflicted by the poison status myself, I hovered above the monster and looked over to where the beautiful Undine girl was standing. And that's all she was doing, just standing there with her special branch wand held loosely in her grasp and staring off into space. "Hey! Asuna? Need a hand here!" Klein's voice was starting to get a little worried, and as I watched his health drain at a surprisingly quick rate I was once again reminded of just why Rythin enjoyed using the Nightblade and its successor the Moonblade so much. Poison was a shockingly powerful attack - and this variant drained health at about ten percent a second, so Klein didn't have that long to live. "Alfheim to Asuna!" Klein screamed as his head dropped into the red zone.

Shocked out of her stupor by the desperation in his voice, Asuna raised her wand and closed her eyes. "Þú fylla heill austr," she chanted, the Words of Power appearing in front of her.

The spell triggered just in time, restoring his health just before the last of it drained away. As the gas cleared, the poison debuff going with it, Klein laughed in relief, keeping a firm grasp on the tail. Silica, Liz, Leafa, and I all attacked, trying to kill the beast before it could break free from Klein and attack again. Fortunately, it collapsed after my blade pierced its side, and shimmered before bursting as we all landed and regrouped.

Asuna sighed as Klein looked at her somewhat askance. "I'm sorry, guys," she apologized. "I didn't mean to space out like that."

Klein just grinned. "Nah, it's all good. No harm no foul, right?"

Lisbeth giggled. "Yeah. Today's your boy's big day. Rythin's too, right, Argo?"

"It starts pretty soon," I said, nodding. Ry had been a little bit absent yesterday and today, but I understood; he was on a job, and he needed to be professional, which meant no using time on the clock to spend time with me. I didn't begrudge him that, at any rate. So long as he came back to me, that was what mattered. "And besides, Asuna, it's not like Klein had any brain cells left to lose from holding his breath. He was in no danger," I added with a grin.

"Hey!" the Salamander yelped, giving me a hurt look.

"I don't know about you guys," Leafa said, "but I say we quit early and get over to our room to watch the tournament."

"I say we use the cash we scored today to buy beer and snacks," Klein said, holding up a fist and grinning happily.

Lisbeth glared at him. "Do you really think we're going to let you blow all our money on food?"

As the two bickered, dragging Silica and Leafa into their argument, I tapped Asuna on the shoulder, grinning at her. "Yrd for your thoughts." Asuna looked at me, and I gave her the _look_. Rythin claimed it looked like I was enjoying a private joke at his expense, but I'm pretty sure Asuna knew it meant I had noticed something was wrong and that trying to hide it would just be amusing to me. The two of us had gotten quite close during our prolonged stay in Aincrad, especially with meeting up for tea at least once a week. "Please, I can tell something's bothering you." I twitched my nose and smirked. "It's instinct."

"Just worried, I guess," Asuna said with a heavy sigh. "Kazuto called last night, and I think something happened in the game. He said he needed to hear my voice, and I'm just concerned." She smiled weakly. "Did Nick say anything about it?"

I... don't think Rythin would want Asuna to know what actually happened. "Depends on how much you're willing to pay," I said. "Look, information's information," I said calmly when Asuna gave me an almost betrayed look.

"Don't worry, Mommy," Yui said, flying over to sit on Asuna's shoulder. The little pixie was adorable as all getout, and I can understand why her parents - and Rythin - dote on her. "Daddy and Uncle are going to win today, you'll see!"

Asuna smiled. "Sure they will. No matter where they go, Kirito and Rythin know how to handle themselves. But Daddy's going to beat Uncle, right?" Ooh, Rythin's going to want to hear that. "And don't you dare think of telling Nick I said that, Argo." Well, shoot. My silence was even enforced by the bag of gold Asuna tossed me automatically, and I grinned as I caught it. I'd taught them well – I'd checked out the description of the bags the first time they gave me one, and it was even titled 'Bribe Bag'. I'm pretty sure Asuna sewed them herself.

"Hey guys, we don't want to miss the first match," Lisbeth said. "So let's start heading over to Yggdrasil City." Everyone summoned their wings and lifted off, soaring into the air.

As we landed on the balcony of Kirito and Asuna's rented home in Yggdrasil City, Klein chose to hover over the edge. "Booze run," he said as means of explanation before shooting off towards the closest bar. I wouldn't doubt he had their locations memorized; he'd already bought the information from me once, the day after we started playing the game. What Kirito and Rythin see in him I'll never know. But Rythin says he's reliable, and he's proven to be a slightly better reader than me - and slightly more cynical - so I trust him.

We tuned in to the MMO Stream channel and put it up on the big wall, arranging ourselves on the couches and sofas available. As usual, I grabbed one of the one-person stuffed chairs and squirmed around, getting comfortable with my legs over one arm of the chair and my upper body draped over the other. "So how long do we have until it starts?" I asked.

"About seven minutes," Leafa replied. "Who do you think's gonna win?"

I grinned mischievously. "I'm going out on a limb and saying one of ours is coming out on top, though I don't know which one." I think the last time I asked him, Rythin's win-loss against Kirito was low, so Kirito might have the upper hand. Then again, this is Rythin, here. The guy had way more practice with Future Step, and that gave him a good advantage. "I'd say odds are 50-50 either way."

"I'm putting my money on Kirito," Silica said without hesitation. Ah, the undying faith of those in love.

"I'm willing to act as bookie," I offered, though nobody took me up on the offer. "Nobody? Cheapskates, all of you..."

A thump on the ledge outside told me Klein had returned, and a second later the boisterous man walked in carrying a paper bag. "And Klein has arrived," he announced, ignoring Lisbeth's groan. "Oh hey, only five minutes left! Just in time."

"If you're a battle junkie who loves the smell of gun oil and gun smoke, then get ready!" the host of MMO Stream chirped. "Place your bets, because we're about to start!" I wasn't a huge fan of the cat-eared lady - she was just a bit too happy - and I think Rythin had the same stance. "Now, are you ready to find out who's the strongest player in Gun Gale Online, the hardest game in town?" she said, waving her hand as some screenshots appeared behind her.

"It looks so _brown_ ," Lisbeth said with a disgusted sigh.

Silica copied her, Pina letting out a small 'Kyaa' of agreement. "I like Alfheim so much more."

"As usual, MMO Stream will be broadcasting the battle live and uncensored!" Klein grinned lasciviously at that comment, and Leafa told him to get rid of that stupid grin without even turning around. "Alright," the announcer said, "help me out with the countdown, guys! Ten! Nine! Eight! Seven!"

I grinned. "We should count along. Six!"

"Five! Four! Three! Two! One!" we all counted in unison, and then cheered when the buzzer rang. It had begun.

Well, it had begun, but not much had happened. There was a brief moment worth watching when Rythin managed to act like a monkey and kill one opponent that had opened fire on him, but aside from that neither of our people had appeared on the screen. Since the avatars were all randomized, I could only tell it was Rythin because he had the knife strapped to his arm and didn't hesitate to use the opponent as a shield against the grenades he threw. It was that kind of ruthless pragmatism that was appealing at times. Other than that, we spent our time going through the different cameras - there was a gunfight happening at a plateau and in a forest, and we switched to another one just in time to see a player explode as his grenades were sniped by a girl with blue hair.

"Where's Kazuto?" Leafa murmured, staring at the list of players still left alive in consternation. "He should have shown up by now."

Silica's cat ears twitched, and I was once again reminded of my desire to switch races. They just looked like so much fun, and Ry definitely seemed to like having them… "Maybe they don't have all the battles up on the feed yet," she said. "I mean, knowing Kirito, we should have seen him running around guns blazing from the start. Rythin already has one kill, so where's Kirito?"

"I don't know," Klein called out from where he was sitting at the bar. "He's one of the craftiest players I've ever met. He's probably laying low somewhere, waiting for the competition to kill each other off." He took a sip of his drink, visibly proud of himself.

"You say that like it's some profound insight," I muttered.

"Oh please," Asuna said with a smile. "You and I both know he doesn't play like that. It's more Rythin's style. Isn't that right, Yui?"

"Absolutely! Besides, Daddy's so fast I doubt he'll even show up on camera!" The little nav pixie started shadow boxing. Probably something she learned from watching Rythin train. "He'll sneak up and strike before the enemy knows what's happening!"

Lisbeth burst out laughing. "He can't do it any other way! I mean, it's a game with guns and he's using a sword. What a doofus!"

After I finished laughing, I sighed. "And Ry's not much better. At least Kirito has a pistol as a backup weapon."

As a chatter of gunfire made the sleeping Pina twitch, Lisbeth whistled. "That one guy's unbelievable," she said, pointing at one of the smaller screens.

"You mean the one in white?" Asuna asked, reaching up to make it the main picture. It was someone called Pale Rider, and he fought almost exactly like Rythin did - all moving around and dodging with acrobatics. It was graceful, in a deadly way. We watched as he shot his opponent without hesitation and then shot him again in the chest after closing the distance almost immediately. Dyne, the guy he was fighting, slumped to his knees and tried to fight back, but Pale Rider shot him execution-style with a shotgun blast to the forehead.

Everyone watching gasped in awe at the skill that player had shown. I knew just how hard it was to keep moving like that - I had tried Rythin's race path one day while he wasn't logged in, and I had barely made it across the first rooftop. Despite my fighting style being the Wild Dance, I wasn't actually all that acrobatic. "He's super-fast," Silica said.

"Just like Rythin," Lisbeth said, still staring at the screen. "That Pale Rider guy's sick. I bet he's gonna win this thing."

Suddenly, the man in white turned around and was struck by something like an electric blast, and we all gasped. "Looks like your boy's full of suck, Liz," Klein taunted a second later.

"Shut up, he's not out of it yet," Lisbeth shot back. She turned back to the screen and zoomed in on the scene, revealing a small needle stuck in his arm and sparking.

"What happened to him?" Silica asked.

Yui studied the image for a brief bit. "It's some sort of paralysis attack," she said. "Most likely temporary."

Leafa was unable to tear her eyes away. "It's like he was struck by that wind spell, Thunder Whip..."

Suddenly the image experience some sort of static, and when it cleared the camera had shifted to what looked like Pale Rider's point of view. Probably just the MMO Stream operator shifting cameras. A ragged cloak flapped, the edge just barely appearing on the camera, and we all gasped. Lisbeth zoomed out slightly, and we saw a man standing there in a cloak with glowing red eyes. I straightened out in my chair and frowned; something about him felt familiar. But why? I sat back, trying to remember where I had seen this man before, and just what was so familiar. The player threw back one edge of his cloak to reveal an arm wrapped in bandages, holding a simple pistol. He crossed himself, then brought the gun to bear; a gunshot rang out of nowhere, and the man in the cloak made a surprisingly agile twist, something that looked like an explosion bursting out behind him. "He dodged a sniper bullet? Don't those things move faster than sound?" I asked, amazed. The man looked to his right and up, before turning back to Pale Rider and bringing the gun to bear again.

He fired, once.

Pale Rider jerked and his health dropped a bit, but he was still alive - and the paralysis bullet seemed to be wearing off. The sparks coming off of the bullet disappeared and he lunged to his feet, gun pointed straight at the mystery player's temple. All he had to do was pull the trigger and he'd defeat him.

Then the gun fell from his hands, and Pale Rider collapsed to the ground, trembling. He clutched at his chest, gripping the front of his tunic tightly, before raising one hand and then disconnecting. We all watched with various expressions - though confusion was dominant - until a heavy boot stomped on the disconnection message. The camera shifted again, and now it was focused on the face of the player, his face hidden by a mask that belched smoke occasionally. Silica gasped and clung to Leafa's shoulder, and I made a mental note that the younger girl seemed to be frightened of the mask, though whether it was the appearance in general or its sudden arrival that actually frightened her was up for grabs. "Death Gun is my name," the player intoned, and my eyes narrowed at the obvious use of a voice modulator. "And the name of my gun." He lifted it in the air and pointed it at the sky, almost aiming at the camera that had appeared there. Asuna gasped, most likely realizing she knew the person too. "One day I'll pay you all a visit too, and bring real death with this gun. You've seen my power. It is real. This isn't over. Not yet. I'm just getting started." The slow deliberate delivery told me this was something he had prepared and practiced for a long time. "It's... showtime."

Behind us a glass hit the floor, shattering, and we all whirled to see Klein sitting there, gaping at the screen. "Jeez," Lisbeth said, "way to scare the hell out of everyone." Then my mind remembered what he had said and dug up the necessary information and presented it to me on a platter, each bit chaining neatly to the next. I had met this person before, but where? Aincrad. How did he know that phrase? Easy, he belonged to a certain group.

"Laughing Coffin," I breathed. Things just took a turn for the worse. "Shit. This is bad."

"You gotta be kidding me," Klein breathed as he stood up and approached the screen, eyes still glued at the red-eyed figure. "No way, it couldn't be..."

"Do you know him too?" Asuna asked, whirling back and forth between me and Klein. "Argo, Klein, do you remember his name?"

I couldn't remember who it could be - I'd had a list of all known Laughing Coffin members before and posted them up all around towns back in Aincrad, but that had been a year ago and I'd tried to forget all about them. Klein shook his head as well. "No, I forget the handle he used. But it's him. There's no doubt he was in Laughing Coffin."

"Was he their leader?" Asuna asked. "You know, the knife wielder?"

"No," Klein said. "Pretty sure it's not PoH. It doesn't feel like him, something about the way this guy talks and acts is different. 'Cept for that showtime line, though."

I grimaced. "I'd never met any of the top brass of Laughing Coffin in person, thank gods, but PoH was so prominent that they were all ranting about him. That 'showtime' line Death Gun used?" Death Gun was a pretty silly name, but I wasn't thinking about that. "That was PoH's signature statement, sort of. He was the only one who said that."

"This guy, he was close to PoH," Klein said, and I nodded; it was the same conclusion I'd come to. "I'm talking right-hand man close."

"Kirito," Asuna whispered, turning back to the screen, eyes shimmering.

As for me, I just curled up into a ball, hugging my knees, and watched the screen. I just hope that Rythin was able to put things together, because I couldn't give him any of this information.

* * *

'It's showtime.'

The phrase echoed in my mind, and a shiver ran down my spine. My lips curled back into a cruel mockery of a smile, and I chuckled madly. Fear? No, not fear. I only felt fear when my family was threatened, so it wasn't fear. The call of the hunt, that was it. It had been a long time since I'd felt that. It just made me want to kill Death Gun even more!

"It's him alright," Kirito announced grimly. "Yeah. That's Death Gun."

The player in question had shouldered his sniper rifle again, covering his arm with the ragged cloak once more. "Should I go stop him?" I murmured, and Kirito shook his head.

"No, not yet. I want to see what name he's using, and if you're going against him I want to be there too."

Sinon, between us, scoffed. "Death Gun? You're joking." She looked at Kirito. "You mean those rumors about players getting shot and disappearing, those are all true?"

"Indeed," I said. "The method of killing is still uncertain, but there's a definite link. Whoever Death Gun shoots with that pistol of his dies soon after."

"That's insane," Sinon said.

"It's not," Kirito snapped, looking at her. "Two people have been confirmed dead."

I grunted and continued watching as Death Gun walked towards edge of the bridge. "And Pale Rider probably just joined their ranks."

Death Gun disappeared behind a massive pillar, remnants of the bridge, and we watched and waited. And watched, and waited, but he didn't come out again. "Where'd he go?" Kirito murmured, staring.

Suddenly, a soft chiming started, and we all jumped slightly; Sinon looked down at her wrist and held it up in front of her. As I had guessed earlier, she had a watch strapped to the underside of her wrist, an analog one. Old school but I guess it worked; I'm assuming the chiming meant the spy satellite had just passed overhead. "Kirito, Rythin," Sinon said, picking up her Hecate and folding the prop before digging out her Satellite Scan Terminal. "Watch the bridge for a sec, I'm gonna check the scan and see what name he's going by."

"Roger," I said absently, eyes unfocused slightly and watching for any movement. If it moved, I'd see it.

"Yeah, you got it," Kirito told her.

I felt Sinon stand up and move away, followed by the sounds of her opening the terminal and starting to look. Then she made a sound of confusion. "Huh? Where is he?"

"What's up?" I called back.

"Could he have moved that fast?" she mumbled to herself. "No. This is our chance," she called.

Kirito and I looked at each, then at her. "For what?" Kirito asked finally.

"Your pal in the cloak hasn't shown up on the terminal," Sinon said. "My guess is, he jumped in the river." So that he wouldn't show up on the scan and we couldn't find out his name. Clever girl. "If I'm right, then he had to disable his gear like you did. He's got too much stuff to just swim across like Rythin."

Kirito blinked. "What about his handgun? He can still move about underwater with that equipped, right?"

Sinon nodded. "Even if he could," she said airily, beginning to walk toward us, "it's just one little handgun. I could take him out easy with my Heca-"

"You can't!" Kirito exclaimed, reaching out and grabbing Sinon's hand. She jolted in shock. "You saw what happened. He used that 'little gun' to kill Pale Rider. All it takes is one shot!"

I blinked and met Sinon's confused gaze. "The mechanics of murder are still unknown, so to ensure survival we have to avoid doing anything to trigger it. As of right now, we know that anybody he shoots with that gun dies, so we have to avoid getting shot by it."

"Get it?" Kirito snapped. "One shot and you're dead for real!" He really was worried about her, wasn't he? I don't really recall the last time he was so worked up about something like this... Ah, when we were trying to save Asuna from the clutches of that bastard Oberon. I guess that was a life or death situation as well.

Sinon stared at him, then looked away. "Yeah, well," she grumbled, "I'm not buying it. How's it even possible? I mean, a player killing people IRL?"

I shrugged. "I told you, we don't know yet. That's why we're here."

Kirito stood up, still holding her hand. "I know it sounds crazy," he said, "but it's the truth." He frowned. "This Death Gun guy killed a lot of people in that VRMMO I was in." Oh, please, she knows it was SAO. Or at least suspects. But I guess that we're keeping that veil of plausible deniability so that she can claim she hasn't interacted with someone she knew was in Aincrad. "When he used his sword on someone, he knew he was really killing them." He looked at me briefly. "And... so did I." I nodded, accepting his words as just what they were. It wasn't an apology, it wasn't a condemnation, it was just an acknowledgement.

Sinon pulled away, looking stunned. Her blood was visibly draining from her face. "There's a killer," she whispered, "a murderer... in GGO?" She grimaced, and her eyes went distant.

As she started to trembled, I sighed. "Panic attack, Kirito," I told him almost lazily. "Take care of it, please."

"Sinon!" Kirito said, putting his hands on her shoulder. "Sinon!"

She jolted, eyes wide and face pale. Then she came back to reality and reached up to place her hand on Kirito's wrist. "I'm alright," she said slowly, and I don't think any of us believed a word of that. "Just a little freaked out." She looked up and attempted to grin. "Anyway, I'm still not convinced what you told me is possible, but I don't think you're lying to me about it either."

"That's good enough," Kirito said. "I can't ask for more."

"Yeah, well," Sinon said, fishing out her Satellite Scan Terminal and turning off the holographic map, "we'd better get out of the area ASAP." She pronounced the acronym as a word, and I blinked before mentally translating it. I wasn't a huge fan of military jargon beyond FUBAR and SNAFU. "The others know we're here by now. They think we're all busy fighting each other, so they'll be closing in soon." Let your enemies fight, then pick off the victor when he's weak. Sound strategy. I approve.

"You got a point," Kirito said. Then he looked at me and nodded with his head, and I stood up with a sigh. "We'll split up here, then. Rythin, ready?"

As the two of us approached the edge of the cliff and prepared to jump down, Sinon said, "Wait, what are you two gonna do?"

"We're going after Death Gun," Kirito said. "Alone." I didn't care one way or another, really. Sinon had proven she was willing to put her drive to win aside and work with us, so I didn't find any problem with her coming. Besides, one extra warm body between me and Death Gun was a good thing. "Whatever you do, stay away from him." Kirito, obviously, felt otherwise.

"But-"

"I'll keep my promise," Kirito said. "Next time we see each other, I'll give you that fight I owe you."

"I call winner," I said with a grin, cracking my neck.

"Oh, and one more thing," Kirito said, grinning at Sinon. "Thanks for hearing us out just now instead of shooting us in the back."

"Eh?" Sinon mumbled. Then Kirito jumped off the edge, and I followed suit after giving her a small wave. "Hey! Argh..." My Acrobatics skills made it trivial to land on the large rocks, and I was just a step or two behind Kirito as we broke into a sprint, heading along the river. A few moments later, Sinon called out, "Wait for me!" Kirito and I came to a halt and turned around to see Sinon running after us, carrying her Hecate. That thing must be awkward as hell to run with. "I'm coming with you."

"What?" Kirito asked, incredulous.

"That Death Gun guy seems pretty tough, and if he kills you, you won't be able to fight me," Sinon explained. Sorry, but your tough guy 'I'm the only one allowed to kill you' act would work better if you weren't looking away bashfully. Pheromones. Has to be.

"Look," Kirito started, "I don't think you ge-"

"I'm not a fan of teaming up either," Sinon said, hefting her gun slightly for effect, "but I think we stand a better chance of knocking that guy out of the game if we work together."

Kirito frowned and shook his head. "No. I'm not down with that. It's too dangerous."

"We don't have any idea where he'll pop up next, so it'll be dangerous whether we're together or not," Sinon pointed out.

I chuckled. "She has a point, Kirito." I folded my arms and shrugged. "I say let her come. She's proven skilled enough."

"Thanks, I think," Sinon grumbled. Kirito looked at both of us, then smiled grimly before nodding.

Then my instincts flared and I drew my knife; Kirito was only a second behind me, drawing his photon sword and flicking the switch. Sinon jerked back in shock as the blade hummed, likely thinking we were betraying her already, but I didn't hesitate to turn my back on her. She'd proven to be trustworthy, and now that we had an alliance it would last until Death Gun was dead. As I watched, bullet lines spread out from the rock where a dude with an eyepatch was crouched, aiming his gun at us. "I'm going," I spat, crouching and shifting slightly to the right to give Kirito room.

"Don't get hit," was all he said before I moved.

The bullets starting raining down on us, and I slipped between them like a dancer. His focus was clustered on the three of us initially, so that gave me plenty of room on the right. The bullets seemingly wove around me as I moved, avoiding each one with just enough room - I could feel the air ripple as they passed, and I could hear Kirito's sword catching the ones that were on the course to hit him and Sinon. The guy finished his first volley, gasping in shock, and I listened to Kirito shout orders. He told Sinon to take a shot when she had an opening while he blocked the bullets, and I grinned. He didn't even have to tell me that it was my job to just get her that opening. I reached the boulder he was using as cover and jumped it, slamming my fist into his gut the split second recognition reached his eyes. I let out a piercing whistle, low-high, and Kirito shouted, "He's all yours!" I dodged to the right, and a second later a high-powered bullet from a gigantic sniper rifle pierce him in the chest, tearing him in half and sending his lower body flying. Damn. A few seconds after the lower torso and legs disappeared behind some rocks, a marker appeared, labeling him as dead, and I snorted. Y'think?

As I rejoined the other two, Sinon stood up and heaved a big sigh while Kirito turned off his saber with a flourish. "Good dodging," he said with a grin.

I just shrugged. "I'm used to it."

We wandered through the path for a while, before Kirito spoke up. "Death Gun's probably heading north up the river," he said. "I wanna be there when he surfaces, but I don't know where he'll stop." Times like these are for the natives to tell us, and Kirito obviously agreed. "Got any ideas, Sinon?"

She blinked at us, somehow surprised we were asking for her input, and then looked down in thought. "I don't know if he's got any other special skills," she said, "but from what I've seen he's a sniper. He's going to avoid open spaces and look for a place with cover." She pointed in the distance. "If I were him I'd set myself up in the ruins of that city."

Kirito reached out and placed a hand on Sinon's shoulder. "Good. Then that's where the three of us are gonna go." He strode off without a care in the world.

Sinon gaped at him for a bit, then visibly stopped giving a shit. "On your six," she said, following him, and I stayed on her left.

"So, Sinon," I asked as we were moving across the rocky open area, "impressions on Kirito so far?" She blushed just a tiny bit, and I sighed. "I meant skill-wise."

She blinked. "Um..."

"She didn't even blink when I blocked a bullet that was heading straight for her," Kirito called back.

I just raised an eyebrow and stared at her. "That's a remarkable amount of faith to put in us," I observed.

"I still don't trust _you_ ," Sinon said flatly, and I grinned, not taking any offense. It was the correct course of action. "The way you dodge those bullets is just bizarre. But Kirito's pretty good with that sword. Then again, you two'd have to be good..."

I chuckled and drew my knife, giving it a spin before taking a few slashes at the air. "I'm not Kirito-good in terms of reflex, but I'm probably the best when it comes to using the defense system."

"How?" Sinon asked incredulously. "It's just a line."

Shaking her head, she hefted her sniper rifle again and looked away. "One I've had two years of practice with," I murmured, too quietly for her to hear.

* * *

At the revelation that Death Gun was a sadistic madman, the mood of the watchers had definitely plummeted. Silica was grasping Leafa for comfort, and the blonde was staring off into the distance. Lisbeth had the same faraway look in her eyes, and Asuna was comforting her. Klein was glaring at the screen, fist clenched, and I was just sitting there, trying desperately to remember who it was. I was Argo the Rat, damn it, and this was my job! How could I forget something so vital?

"In SAO, we had an unwritten rule," Klein started suddenly, and we all looked at him. "Never let another player's HP hit zero, no matter what. We knew, if it dropped to nothing, that player would _die_." He gritted his teeth. "Laughing Coffin didn't care. They killed dozens... no, hundreds of people. The assault team had to step in. They put a party together to hunt them down and capture them." I remember that; I wasn't in on the secret, no info brokers were aside from the one that had the information, but we were told about the raid after it had occurred. Rythin had masterminded it, and Asuna and Kirito spearheaded the attack.

"And, Kazuto was there with you?" Leafa asked quietly.

"Yeah." Somehow, Klein's voice conveyed so much more sadness than should be possible with just one word. "He was up there, going toe to toe. Everything went to hell pretty fast." Klein's voice was rough, and I realized the memories were still affecting him, even today. Just seeing Death Gun, realizing that some remnant of Laughing Coffin was still out there murdering people, had to be tough for him to realize. I had always been on the sidelines, isolated; I was just giving people what they paid for, nothing more, nothing less. Anything they chose to do with it wasn't my business, and since my info was never wrong I shared in all the glory and none of the failure. It was a safe bet, and more importantly it kept me away from the reality of what I had been dealing with. Laughing Coffin had just seemed abstract to me. But now here they were, threatening the man I love, and they weren't so abstract any more. I realized I had clenched my fist, digging my nails into my palm, and forced myself to relax. I wasn't helping anyone by sitting here and freaking out, I was only preventing myself from implementing my full strength.

"Oh man," Leafa murmured, "that's why Kazuto's been acting so weird lately." She looked away. "Now I'm worried. Maybe he's trying to settle some grudge or something."

"Grudge?" Lisbeth exclaimed, looking worried. "Isn't this supposed to be a part-time job?" Asuna and I exchanged a look, and she nodded. It was time to explain what exactly was going on.

"Sorry, I'm logging out for a bit," she announced. The girls made noises of confusion, and she continued. "I have to get in touch with Kirito and Rythin's client."

"Wait, they've got a client?" Silica asked, understandably confused.

"Mm-hm," Asuna nodded. "He's the one who got them to dive into GGO. I bet he knows what's going on." She looked at the nav pixie riding her shoulder. "Oh, and Yui? I'm going to need your help while I'm gone. Help Argo dig up any information on GGO."

Yui floated into the air and landed on my shoulder, giving Asuna a salute. "You can count on me, Mommy!"

Asuna nodded and stepped away, swiping open her menu. "I'll be back in a little while," she told us. "Wish me luck." With a few button presses, her avatar vanished.

While Yui set to work pulling up information and displaying it in front of me, I looked around the others. "Nick probably told you a little bit," Leafa said. "Is there anything you can tell us?"

I nodded, watching to see what Yui was finding. Most of it was junk information, just some blog posts about the game itself, but I was sorting through it faithfully. "Some, not much," I said. This was no time to sell information, it was important that everyone was on the same page. "According to Ry, this was a recon job. Go in, find a guy, get out." I sighed. "My guess is, the guy they were supposed to find is this Death Gun nutjob." That did fit with what little bits Rythin had told me, and it definitely explained why Kirito was having flashbacks to Aincrad. I'm still furious with myself that I can't remember Death Gun's name, but I have to focus on sorting this information right now. I can't let myself be distracted with self-flagellation. "I don't know why they were going after him, but if his little announcement has anything to do with it they were probably supposed to figure out who Death Gun really is and how he kills."

I just hope we won't have to figure it out first hand.

* * *

The last bit was ahead of us, and we broke into a sprint, crossing the open plain in between the rocky bits and the ruined city. If we were going to be sniped, now was the time. "I'm clearing ahead," I said, going at my full speed. Lightly loaded, I was faster than Kirito and Sinon, which made me a good choice for forward scout now that all of us could see the ambush coming.

"Got it," Kirito said, letting me pull ahead. I raced forward, blowing across the hard surface toward the entrance to the ruined city; there were a series of steps, and I vaulted the first one, landing lightly on the railing before pushing off to clear the second flight of steps with ease. Whirling around, knife in my hand, I made a quick scan of the area, but nobody stood out. And even if they did show up, trying to kill me, I could take them out without getting touched. I whistled again, high-low, signaling Kirito that we were clear. It was a small code that we had worked out before, working in Aincrad and Alfheim together. Low-high was 'target found', and high-low was 'all clear'. Rather convenient for this game, now that I think about it.

"Where the heck did he go?" Sinon asked as I rejoined them, landing lightly after jumping down the stairs. "You think we might have passed him on the way over here?"

"No, we didn't pass him," Kirito said instantly. "I was keeping an eye on the river while we were running, and I know Rythin was watching the left." He knows me so well. How nice.

We all looked at the broken hole in the concrete, where the river led to a sewer grate. "Oh. But the river dead-ends here," Sinon noted. "I guess he must be lurking around somewhere in the city now."

Kirito looked at the watch on his wrist. Wait, does everyone have one of those but me? "Okay," he said, "listen. When his location pops up in the next scan, we'll rush him before he can kill anyone else." Makes sense, he had to be out of the water. We'd been watching it the whole way, and now that we made it to the end without spotting him there was no way he could still be underwater. So he had to show up on the map.

"I'm down with that," Sinon said, then raised a finger. "But there's one problem. How will we know who Death Gun is? I mean, that's not his avatar's handle, remember?"

By the sheepish look on Kirito's face, I realized he had forgotten that little fact. "Oh yeah, right," he muttered, looking away.

"Three people," I said, gnawing at my thumbnail in thought. "You didn't know three people in the entire list of players. And now that we know he's in the BoB, Death Gun has to be one of those three players." I snorted. "For fairly obvious reasons, it's not Pale Rider." While talking, we were moving into the ruined city to find cover. "That leaves Musketeer X and Sterben as our possible culprits. If only one is in the city, well, we have our Death Gun." I wasn't sure if Musketeer X could be Death Gun, but I hadn't really paid that much attention to the members of Death Gun. Someone loyal enough to PoH to continue his work in his name outside of Aincrad, a female that I had seen before... Maybe. I couldn't rule her out. There was the possibility that it was her, and after all I wasn't sexist about my possible murder culprits.

"If they're both in the city, we can't afford to pick the wrong one," Sinon said.

I just grinned. "There's three of us, remember. I can go by myself and take one down."

Sinon's eyes widened. "Wait a sec. I just thought of something. Remember how Musketeer X is written Juushi? The shi in the name could be read as death, get it? And the X as cross, like making the sign of the cross." Somehow, I doubt that Death Gun is religious. "You think? Or maybe it's too obvious..."

I snorted. "Conspiracy theories aside, it's possible. Kirito?"

"Maybe it's not too obvious," he said, putting his hand on his chin and thinking. "Aren't avatar names usually simple and obvious? Mine's a variation on my real name, and yours?"

"Yeah, same here," Sinon admitted.

"And Rythin's is basically his name reversed and changed a little..." Kirito said. Realizing we had basically almost introduced ourselves, the three of us shared a small quiet chuckle. "Well," Kirito said, "if they're both here we'll go after Musketeer X first."

I grinned happily. "I call main attacker. I want payback after my loss."

"Oh, and if we get paralyzed like Pale Rider," Kirito told Sinon, "don't panic. Get into position and wait."

"Huh?!"

We stopped, and I stared at Sinon. "Death Gun is an exhibitionist," I said flatly. "He wants to show off for his audience, get recognized for his power. He'll _have_ to come out to finish us off, because his power is the power to strike you down with a single bullet. It looks stupid to shoot from the shadows." Thank the gods for predictable, arrogant assholes. They make life so much easier. "When he does..." My grin turned feral. "That's when you take the shot."

Sinon looked a little concerned. "Aren't you worried I'll shoot you too?" she asked finally. There was an element of teasing in her voice, but I could tell it was an actual question.

Kirito did as well, and he just smiled. "Are you kidding? You're the last person I would expect to play it like that." He moved over and patted her upper arm slightly. "Let's go, partner. We're counting on you."

As Kirito climbed the steps, heedless of his action's results, Sinon clutched Hecate to her chest and touched the spot where Kirito's hand had rested. Then she shook her head, likely trying to get thoughts of him out. "Okay, but once we get him all bets are off!" she shouted.

I just sighed and followed her. "Methinks the lady doth protest too much," I said casually.

"Oh shut up."

"I mean, really, this is like the third time you've threatened to shoot him. I think he gets the point."

"Rythin..." Sinon growled.

"So if you're really just saying that to hide something else..."

"Rythin, I swear to god, you're first," she snapped, and I just laughed cheerfully. That one was real, not some act she was putting on to hide from her emotions.

"You're not made of ice. It's okay to express yourself, Sinon," I told her. "Even if that expression is a heartfelt confession of love to the girliest-looking man present at the moment."

Interesting; Sinon's face is a mixture between anger at being read so easily, embarrassment because of what I insinuated, and a tiny, tiny bit of gratitude for the advice. "Rythin..." Oh hey look at the time I'd better go catch up to Kirito bye Sinon. Let's go face Death Gun and risk my life because it's safer than facing _that_ fallout.

As I joined my friend, he glanced at me and then back at the fuming Sinon. "Enjoying yourself?"

"A bit."

"Don't piss her off too much. I can't say she won't shoot you in the back."

I just grinned and rested my hand on his shoulder. "Relax, Kirito, I know where her line is now. I'm not gonna cross it just for shits and giggles, especially when I need to trust her behind me."

Kirito just sighed. "As long as you know what you're doing." Jokes on you, Kirito, I _never_ know what I'm doing. It's part of the fun, after all. I mean, I _know_ what I'm doing but I don't know what I'm doing. Aaand I'm not even making sense to myself any more. Fantastic. Basically I'd be the guy who presses the big red button just to see what starts exploding.

When Sinon's wristwatch beeped we were near an overturned car, and we took shelter behind it despite their disturbing tendency to explode from one bullet. Granted, that one bullet was from Sinon's anti-tank gun, but still. With her Satellite Scan Terminal in hand, she stared at her watch, counting the seconds until it was ready. Once the minute hand hit the 15-minute mark, she opened the holomap and zoomed in to just our area. "Kirito, check the north side of the map," she ordered. "Rythin, watch our backs." I nodded and kept watch on the road and buildings; I kept my senses aware, so that even the brief bit of bloodlust would let me know someone was about to shoot at us. I wasn't going to be caught again like I was against Musketeer X. That woman had skills, though, I had to admit.

Kirito tapped a player's icon, and they gasped. "It's him!" Sinon murmured, and I spared a glance to see that it was Musketeer X. She was the only one out of our targets in the city, and I felt a small sinking sensation. I had liked her, however little. She was a good opponent, and I wanted to fight her again. Well, shame it had to end this way. Made sense, though. She was a sniper, Death Gun was a sniper; she had been able to read my moves just by watching me fight, and that was something a trained player needed to be capable of, especially if they were going to be trying to kill someone in Aincrad. Damn. "He's the only one in the city. Guess he's our man, huh?"

"Yeah, I don't see Sterben around," Kirito muttered. "That settles it, Musketeer X and Death Gun are one and the same." I gritted my teeth and held back a snarl. I had been close to Death Gun the entire time - I had _lost_ to Death Gun, and the only reason I was still alive was because Musketeer X hadn't wanted to tip her hand just yet. That was surprisingly galling. "That means he's going after..." Kirito tapped the nearest icon. "Him." Him being Ricoco.

"We'd better move fast," Sinon said. "Ricoco's almost in range."

"Yeah. Are you ready for this?" Kirito asked Sinon.

She nodded. "Yep."

"Rythin?"

I cracked my knuckles, my eyes grim. "Let's go." Sinon killed the holographic map and grabbed Hecate; we crouched down, peering out from cover. Sinon gave the hand signal to move forward and ran out, Kirito and I right behind her. We moved cautiously, keeping an eye out for anyone else still in the area; Sinon peered around corners before stepping out, and we were sure to keep moving from cover to cover. No sense getting killed by some other enterprising player just before the big showdown with Laughing Coffin, is there?

When our target, the large coliseum where Musketeer X had holed up, was in view, Sinon stopped. Her eyes turned a brighter shade of green, and I recognized the tell for some sort of scouting ability. Her eyes traveled up the coliseum before she stopped and blinked. "Found him. Up there."

"He's probably waiting for Ricoco to walk right up into his sights," Kirito said. "Rythin and I will attack Musketeer X from behind while we have the chance." We stepped around Sinon and prepared to rush. "That building in front of the stadium might be a good place to get into position." The building he pointed out, a tall building, seemed like a good enough spot. As long as she could cover us while fighting Musketeer X, we were solid.

"No," Sinon objected, "I'm coming with you."

Kirito calmly placed a hand on Sinon's shoulder. "Not this time," he said. "We can fight way better knowing you're watching our backs. We're a team, remember?" Sinon hesitated, but finally nodded with a sound of consent. Satisfied, Kirito smiled and nodded. "All we're going to need is the thirty seconds to get up there."

"I can probably take a few shortcuts," I observed, eyeballing the distance to the spot where Sinon's eyes had stopped. A few floors up, but that really wasn't that big a deal. "Acrobatics, remember. But is that enough time for you, Sinon?"

She paused thoughtfully before nodding again. "Plenty."

"Cool," Kirito said before nodding to me. "See you in a bit!" And just like that, we were running off to fight Death Gun.

We stopped just outside the entrance to the underground tunnels; that was where Kirito and I would split up. He'd take the inner route, while I'd wait for about ten seconds and then jump up the side of the building. We'd end up hopefully crashing Musketeer X's party at the same time, catching her in a pincer. "You've fought Musketeer X before, what's he like?" Kirito asked.

I grimaced, tapping my heel against the ground in a nervous and automatic movement. "She's tough, I'll give her that. Managed to set up a bunch of tripwires while waiting for me to come to her and then just sniped while I had to dodge the explosions. Makes sense, though, if she..." I trailed off, realizing Kirito had stopped listening a while back.

"Wait, she?" Kirito's eyes had widened, and I could tell by the tone of his voice that this was an important question.

"Yeah...?" I could have sworn I told him about that at some point. Did...did I really never mention the gender of Musketeer X to him? That didn't really matter, did it? I had been distracted, but I could have sworn…

Kirito paled, and I realized that was a worse oversight than I thought. "Oh, no," he breathed. "We're wrong!"

"Wrong about what?"

"Musketeer X isn't Death Gun!" he snapped, staring at me.

Oh.

My constantly tapping foot stopped. _Oh._

…Oh fuck.

I swore under my breath. "But... You're sure?"

Kirito nodded grimly. "Death Gun is male. I've fought him before. And if Musketeer X is a woman, then that means we're wrong about her."

Somehow, that statement filled me with conflicting emotions of relief and despair. Relief because I hadn't judged her that wrong, and despair because _crap Death Gun was still on the loose and we had no idea where to look_. What had we overlooked? His pattern. He had a pattern to his killings, he had to. Suddenly, something clicked into place. "Sinon," I breathed. "He's after Sinon next."

"What?"

"He knew we were there, watching," I babbled, my words spilling out in a rush. "He knew Sinon was there and he knew we were with her. So he's going after her to get to us because he wants to know if we're the real things. If we snap and go berserk when she dies..."

Kirito's eyes blazed suddenly. "That won't happen."

"Yeah, okay," I snapped. "Change in plans." The Tactician was here and he was working fast. "I'm quick, I have the best chance of making it to Sinon in time. You go after Musketeer X just in case we were right the first time." Kirito looked like he wanted to object, but I glared at him. "Go!" I could only work my miracle if my pieces moved as I commanded, and Kirito knew that from long experience following my orders in Aincrad. With a nod, he set off into the darkness and I sped away, retracing my steps and searching for Sinon.

Where is she, where is she? I raced under a set of streetlights with crows on them, cawing at me, and I glared at the birds. They scattered under the force of my rage, and I grinned to myself. Damn carrion eaters. Sinon won't be your next meal. Not if I can stop Death Gun in time. Idiot, idiot, idiot! Why didn't you say something earlier! If they knew Musketeer X was female, we wouldn't have split up and Sinon wouldn't be vulnerable right now.

I rounded the corner and my heart clenched. Sinon was lying on the ground, sprawled awkwardly to her side. Hecate was lying a small distance away, and I could see the stun needle in her arm even from this distance. I bit off another curse and hid around the corner; Death Gun wasn't there. So he was good at sniping from a distance, was he? Maybe I'll finally figure out how he managed to sneak up on us like that.

I listened in on Sinon as she muttered to herself. "But... Death Gun's supposed to be in the stadium..." I'm sorry. It was my fault. I was wrong. Then she gasped slightly, and I watched as a section of the empty air warped and changed, revealing the form of Death Gun as he appeared from thin air.

What.

Oh come on that's just cheating. As sand and grit crunched underneath his boots, Death Gun approached Sinon's prone body. I slipped the knife from its arm sheath and prepared to attack; I held back, though, because he was still on his guard and if I rushed him he might have enough time to shoot Sinon. Better wait until all of his focus was on her and I could take him by surprise. If he's going to stop in front of Sinon, I can cross the distance in about a second or two moving at full speed; that won't give him enough time to react before I can knock him away. Death Gun's cloak flapped in the wind as he stopped in front of Sinon. "Kirito, Rythin," he announced. "Wherever you are, it's time I found out if you're the real deal, or a fake." That stupid voice modulator was really starting to piss me off. I studied the eyes of the mask of my target, trying to understand his thoughts so that I could strike when he was distracted, and I imagined I could see the flames of madness in the glowing red eyes. I'd seen those flames before, when I looked in the mirror occasionally, and so I had my motive – he was a madman drunk on power and bloodlust. "I remember how you fought back then, Kirito, all fury and rage." Okay, so I've never met him. Therefore he was present at the Laughing Coffin purge, but he survived. That limited the pool of available people, but what were the names of the really insane ones again? Damn it brain, work! "If I kill this... friend of yours, and you go berserk like I remember, I'll know it's really you."

Sinon gasped and stared at him, and I watched as she slowly fought for control over her body. I remember doing that, once. When I had lost everything and all that was left was to take. Kayaba had murdered Asuna and I had been determined to extract the cost of her life from his flesh. "Come on, Kirito," Death Gun rambled, and I watched, barely breathing, as Sinon slowly reached for the pistol holstered on her hip. "Show me. Let's see your fury. Your rage." I'll show you rage and fury, bastard. I'll drag you straight to hell for daring to threaten my friend. You attempt to take and take and take and I won't let you take my friend from me. "Your insane sword." I blinked, my anger thrown to the side by confusion. Are... are we talking about the same guy? Though, I never did see my friend fight that day on the Laughing Coffin attack, I just saw the aftermath. And his eyes when he fought The Gleam Eyes and Kayaba – I can see how this madman could make the mistake of thinking Kirito's sword was filled with madness. "Show me, for old times' sake." Slowly, Death Gun began to cross himself, and something about the action seemed significant. Why was he crossing himself? Bastard obviously wasn't doing this for religious reasons or he'd be ranting about heathens and purity and whatever. Bloody fanatics, I swear. I delegated the problem to the backburner and tensed; my opportunity would come just as he pulled out the gun and focused on Sinon.

Sinon was still groaning, awkwardly trying to retrieve her weapon, and she had just freed the pistol when Death Gun whipped his arm to the side, pistol held in his outstretched arm. But he was still showboating, talking to the camera that I could see in front of him, and he was looking around. It was too dangerous to rush him. Suddenly, Sinon paled and her pistol dropped from suddenly nerveless fingers. What... My eyes widened and then narrowed as comprehension dawned. The gun. She had a reaction to the gun. But surely she... The picture started clicking into place, one little tiny bit at a time - her reaction to the gun, her freakout when told a murderer was in the game. Her obsession over getting strong in this world of guns. I didn't have the full picture, but what I had managed to put together gave me a fairly good idea of what was about to happen. Sure enough, Sinon was paralyzed entirely, staring at the gun Death Gun held in his hands and whimpering slightly.

Death Gun racked the slide, cocked the hammer back, and aimed the muzzle at her, and I launched myself from cover, offering a quick prayer to whatever deity was listening that I'd make it in time.

A gunshot rang out.

* * *

 **Well, uh… Rythin screwed up. If the other two had seen his fight, or if he had just once mentioned Musketeer X's gender, shit would be going differently. But he was distracted by Kazuto's 'monster' comment, and then the whole tournament and Pale Rider murder thing kinda happened. Still not an excuse, though. Bad Nick, bad, no murder for you.**

 **Argo's interludes were a thing I threw in because I did want to show things from her perspective as well; she's an important player in this story as well, even if she's on the sidelines for now. Her role will be a little more active in the later chapters, but rest assured she'll have plenty of screen time. Due to most of the first third of this story taking place in GGO, she hasn't appeared much, but hey, it's not over yet. Also yes she totally picked up swearing in polytheism from Nick.**

 **In addition, in regards to cliffhangers: Mwahahaha mine is an evil laugh.**

 **Many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.**


	8. Chased by the Reaper

**Chapter 8: Chased by the Reaper**

* * *

 **December 14** **th** **, 2025**

Sinon was still groaning, awkwardly trying to retrieve her weapon, and she had just freed the pistol when Death Gun whipped his arm to the side, pistol held in his outstretched arm. But he was still showboating, talking to the camera that I could see in front of him, and he was looking around. It was too dangerous to rush him. Suddenly, Sinon paled and her pistol dropped from suddenly nerveless fingers. What... My eyes widened and then narrowed as comprehension dawned. The gun. She had a reaction to the gun. But surely she... Things started clicking into place, one little tiny bit at a time - her reaction to the gun, her freakout when told a murderer was in the game. Her obsession over getting strong in this world of guns. I didn't have the full picture, but what I had managed to put together gave me a fairly good idea of what was about to happen. Sure enough, Sinon was paralyzed entirely, staring at the gun Death Gun held in his hands and whimpering slightly.

Death Gun racked the slide, cocked the hammer back, and aimed the muzzle at her, and I launched myself from cover, offering a quick prayer to whatever deity was listening that I'd make it in time.

Just as Death Gun was about to pull the trigger and end Sinon's life, a bullet whistled through the air and struck him in the shoulder, the gunshot ringing out a split second later. Death Gun staggered, and that gave me more than enough time to cross the open ground and leap into a spinning roundhouse. Incredibly impractical in real life, incredibly badass in games. The point of my toe slammed into Death Gun's chest, and he was knocked back. Recovering in midair, he landed on the ground, sliding back from the force of the impact, and immediately took cover behind a nearby pillar. He holstered his pistol and brought out his stun sniper before taking a few shots at Kirito; I think Kirito got hit. Not sure. When Death Gun took aim at me I was able to dance around the bullet line effortlessly, the bullets whistling through the air and barely missing me. As the bullets flashed by me, one was aimed at Sinon, and I cartwheeled to intercept the bullet, taking the strike in my palm. It hurt, but not enough to make me fall or stumble. Still, faster firing rate than I expected, given he was using a sniper rifle, but meh. Dancing around, I managed to keep his aim off of Sinon for the time by staying between him and the girl.

I managed to buy enough time for Kirito to arrive; I saw him in the distance as he reared back and tossed something. A grenade clattered, landing between me and Death Gun, and I blinked as I recognized the shape of a smoke grenade. Looks like Kirito's giving us a way out. Death Gun jerked back, and Sinon gasped. "That grenade!" she muttered. Death Gun immediately gave up on trying to shoot me - since he was now outnumbered - and bolted into the ruined building behind him. I think it was a video rental store or something like that, not that it was really important. Sinon winced and closed her eyes just before the grenade went off. As the smoke filled the air, I saw Kirito grab Sinon and her sniper rifle, nodding at me. I nodded back and we bolted; as I passed, I grabbed Sinon's pistol and stuck it in my pant's pocket. She'd probably want that later. I briefly thanked whatever stupid arrogance had convinced me to go in this without a secondary gun; otherwise, I don't think I could have picked up her gun or taken it with me.

We ran, and Sinon gradually opened her eyes. "K-Kirito..." she mumbled, looking up at him. I was able to keep pace with them fairly easily, even with turning to watch our backs for Death Gun, so hearing her was no real problem. Kirito raced through the streets, carrying Sinon in a bridal carry; the streets were filled with rubble and Sinon was probably pretty, heavy, so he was just focused on running and putting distance between us and Death Gun. "I'm slowing you down," Sinon moaned. "Just leave me."

I saw a red line stretch toward us, and I snapped, "Left!" Kirito immediately shifted in that direction just before a bullet skimmed past his shoulder and struck the edge of a sign up ahead, knocking it down. I noticed the glowing red wound on his shoulder, and realized he had already gotten hit before - probably crossfire from when Death Gun was shooting at me, or when he met Musketeer X.

Still panting, Kirito ran past the dust cloud the fallen sign had created and veered to the left, where three buggies and a horse were waiting patiently. Wait, a robot horse? I shook my head and focused on following my friend. I could be confused about the vehicle design decisions later. Kirito stopped in front of the vehicles and looked back and forth, probably trying to figure out just what to do; Sinon stirred again. "Not...the horse." What was her problem? Her voice was weak, and if her past actions were any indication then she should be squirming to get out of Kirito's gentle hold, not lying there limply. Some sort of trauma from the gun Death Gun used, then? "It can go fast, but...it's too hard to handle." Kirito made an executive decision and walked forward, placing Sinon on the backseat of the buggy on the far left. She didn't even move, she just sat there and stared at him, face pale. Whatever her issue is, it's affecting her performance, and if my pawns can't act as they should I can't do my job. I hopped into the seat next to her, and Kirito placed her Hecate on her right. He jumped into the driver's seat and placed his palm on the payment window, purchasing the buggy.

He revved the engine, and the tires squealed; still, Kirito knew how to handle a motorcycle, and we peeled out of the buggy rental area and were on our way. I looked over at Sinon and frowned slightly; her mouth was hanging open a little bit, and her eyes were distant. "Hey," I murmured, gently shaking her shoulder. A soft touch is unlike me, but it should have the best effect right now. "Doing okay?" She just closed her eyes and sighed. Whatever happened when she saw that gun, whatever caused her panic attack, it had broken something.

We came to a halt, and Kirito turned around. "Sinon, get your rifle," he said. "And blow that horse away!" Good thinking, actually, Kirito. Death Gun was from SAO - and that meant he'd probably be able to ride the thing, because horses were available in Aincrad and the damn things were pretty ornery. That one time, when Kirito and I were racing to make it to Yoruko and Caynz in time, and it dumped him... Heh. There's only one problem with your plan, Kirito, and it's that Sinon's still freaked out from seeing the gun.

The girl in question shook her head, like she had been lost in her thoughts. "Huh? Wha?" She turned around to stare at the horse, still standing patiently at the rental place like a good obedient robot. "A-alright. I'll try." She grabbed her sniper rifle and brought it to bear; she aimed down the scope and started breathing slowly. In... out... in... out... She started to pull the trigger - and then froze. I was watching her closely, so I caught it; a minute widening of her eyes and a small hiss of breath. Her finger twitched on the trigger, and she couldn't bring herself to pull it. "No..." she whispered. "My finger..." She stared at it with wild eyes, her face pale, and brought her eye back to the scope. "I can't pull it!" Whatever her problem with that gun was, it had screwed up the rest of her. "I can't do it!" She gritted her teeth and made small choking noises. "I can't pull the trigger!"

A finger in a dark cloak rounded the corner and turned to stare at us, red eyes burning brightly enough that I could see them, even from this distance. Gods I love not needing glasses in the virtual world. As he started running towards us, Sinon gasped and jerked back, eyes glued to Death Gun, and I jerked my head at Kirito. He nodded and placed a hand on Sinon's shoulder. "Hang on tight!" he shouted. Sinon tore her eyes away from Death Gun with a stifled shriek, and the engine roared as we started moving again. The horse wasn't destroyed, but fuck it. Actually, I should have just used my grenades. That would have solved the problem. Rrgh, just one mistake after another. Focus, Rythin, focus! As Death Gun fell behind, Sinon slumped in her seat slightly, staring into the distance again. "We can still get away!" Kirito shouted, glancing in the side mirror. "Stay sharp, damn it!"

Sinon looked behind us, and she gasped as Death Gun tore around the corner, riding on the mechanical horse. The robot steed was indeed faster than the buggy was, and I watched as it slowly gained ground. It's gaining only a few meters at a time, and we did have a headstart, but it's getting closer. If I dropped a grenade... Five seconds, maybe? I picked out a landmark once we passed it and started counting. One, two, three... at six Death Gun passed it, the horse's steel hooves clattering on the pavement. So, six seconds distance between us. My grenades had a fuse of about three... Not yet. I had to wait. So let's deal with a problem that I can maybe do something about. "No..." Sinon whimpered, shaking as she stared at the slowly approaching horseman.

"Sinon," I said. "Focus. It's a game. It's not real. Whoever you're seeing under that hood is not the real thing." A blind shot in the dark, but she had _some_ sort of trauma relating to guns, so I assumed someone had held her at gunpoint before or something.

She didn't hear me, or if she did she didn't believe me. "He's catching up. Hurry, faster!" She clutched Kirito's shoulders and buried her face in his back. "Please, don't let him catch up to us!" She was close to tears. What could I do? She was in her own little world and no matter what I said or did I wouldn't be able to break her out of it. She was really only responding to Kirito right now.

The engine was purring nicely, and I was glad to see that the road ahead was more or less clear of debris - Kirito could just floor the accelerator and go as fast as we could. Because naturally, the horse would be more maneuverable, right? Stupid four legs. Death Gun was still approaching, and soon he'd be in range to start attacking. But he had to hold on to the reins with one hand, so he couldn't... Aw, crap. The pistol.

Death Gun shifted position, and I tensed. Sure enough, he had drawn his gun, and Sinon's eyes were locked on to the weapon, wide and staring. The bullet line flashed toward us, hitting me briefly before shifting away and hitting Sinon's cheek. She whimpered and almost flung herself away a split second before the pistol bullet streaked past her cheek; she screamed and clung to Kirito again. "No!" she shouted. Death Gun fired again, but this time he only hit the wheelhouse. He was trying to shoot out our wheels so that he would catch up immediately. I took another count, and this time he was only four seconds away. So close... But the gait of his horse was too much for him to shoot straight, and Death Gun holstered his pistol again. "Help me..." Sinon murmured, clinging to Kirito's back for safety. "I can't do this. I don't wanna die!"

Death Gun was close enough now that I could hear the clatter of the hooves over the engine of our buggy, and I frowned. Yes I could probably use the grenade now, but if he dodged it - and I was pretty certain he would, with a three second warning - I'd have tipped my hand for no good reason. No, I needed to wait. Wait for a good opening. "Hey, Sinon!" Kirito shouted. The girl was whimpering and clinging to his back like it was the only thing solid to her right now. Which, to be fair, given her state of mind she might really think Kirito is the only thing that's safe at the moment. "Snap out of it!" She opened her eyes and made a sound of confusion, and Kirito took that as an invitation to continue. "Listen, he's catching up with us! Pick up your gun and shoot him!"

Sinon whimpered and shrunk in on herself, not letting go of Kirito. "No, I can't!" she cried, shaking her head.

"You don't have to hit him! Just distract him!" Kirito shouted. I glanced at him, and he nodded; he'd noticed I was counting the seconds, and he figured out what I was going to do.

"I can't!" Sinon wailed. "Don't make me... don't make me..."

Kirito turned. "Then get up here and steer this thing! Give me your gun and I'll shoot him!"

Sinon turned to stare at her gun, and I leaned forward next to her ear. "Your gun is part of you," I murmured. "If you give Hecate to him, you'll lose a piece of yourself and you'll _never_ be able to pull that trigger again. You won't be strong enough, and you'll be weaker than ever before." She looked at me, eyes wide, and then hesitantly took her gun and shifted to a firing position; she braced her knees against the cushion I was sitting on, and I glanced down at where her knee was. A little close to my groin for comfort, yes, but at least she was fighting back. I smiled slightly, then drew a frag grenade. Let's see... I think the manual said I could change the explosion timer... There we go. As I twisted the top half of the grenade slightly, a number appeared and started dropping. Three to two to one. Excellent. Death Gun was too close for the three second grenade, but with only one second between when I threw it and when it exploded, we should be good.

Sinon was wavering though, and I saw her finger twitching, like she could barely move it. "I can't do it," she said. "I can't shoot, I can't move my finger." She closed her eyes. "I can't. I can't fight any more." Don't give up, Sinon. Please. When she still didn't move, I snarled under my breath, looking back at Death Gun. Damn it, Sinon, I thought you were stronger than that. Even if it's fragile, rebuild your damn shell and lie to yourself for just a little bit longer.

"You can!" Kirito shouted, still not taking his eyes off of the road. Oh, so you pick _now_ to pay attention to your driving? "Everyone can fight if they want to. It's your choice, so what'll it be?" He reached over and took the handlebar with his left hand, freeing his right so he could twist and reach back. "Will you give up or will you fight?"

Sinon stilled, and then her finger shifted away from the trigger. "If it's my choice," she said, and I winced at how defeated her voice sounded, "then I don't wanna fight any more. I'm done. I don't wanna suffer any more."

"Why?" I asked her. A simple question. Why don't you want to fight? You told us you wanted to be the strongest in all of GGO, didn't you? You wanted to kill all the strong players, right? So why give up your goal?

"I thought I could get stronger, playing this game," she murmured. "But I was wrong." Kirito had finally managed to get stable and he reached back to cover her right hand with his own. I just had to shift to the side slightly to let him have enough room. The instant his hand touched hers, Sinon's eyes snapped open and she whipped her head around to stare at him.

"I'll help you," Kirito said. "But you have to try! So c'mon, you can do this!"

He guided her finger back to the trigger gently, and I grinned faintly, glancing at the road ahead for rubble. There wasn't any debris, so I figured we'd be okay without Kirito looking. "It's no good," Sinon said. "With all this shaking around, I can't lock on!"

Kirito smiled, and I looked ahead at the road. My eyes widened. When did that show up? Kirito you son of a - "It's okay," he said. "The shaking's gonna stop in three..." Death Gun aimed his gun. "Two..." The bullet line struck her cheek. "One..." Kirito gritted his teeth. "Now!" I threw my grenade.

Just as I did that, the buggy hit a ramp made of debris and I think a broken car and launched into the air; since I had done my part, I just clung to the seat and tried super hard not to look down. I didn't really have a problem with heights, given Alfheim and my usual means of transportation - what I did have was a problem with being in a deathtrap in the air where it may or may not explode when a bullet hits the engine. Sinon was staring at Kirito as he focused on the enemy, and it was like I could hear her thoughts. How does he do it? How is he so calm now? And why is that Rythin guy so devilishly handsome? Well, maybe not that last one. Then her face shifted and she looked through the scope; she found that last little bit of strength and dug for it, giving it everything she had. I grinned madly - good, Sinon was back, kinda. Probably still traumatized, but at least I could work with this one. Her finger tightened around the trigger and she breathed out slowly. Then she pulled it.

The bullet missed Death Gun; I expected it to. She was on a buggy that was soaring through the air, of course she was going to miss a precise shot like that. But the bullet served its role; as it slammed into the side of the car parked on the side of the street, Death Gun's head whipped over to the car and he completely missed the small grenade that I had thrown earlier. Then a small gout of flame shot out of the car, and I frowned with a sigh. "You've got to be fu-" My curse was cut short by the massive explosion as the car went up in flames from the simple power of Sinon's bullet. That doesn't even work! Gasoline needed a spark to catch fire, and even if it did it wouldn't... You know what? It's a video game. Screw it. The car's an exploding barrel, why not. The explosion of my own grenade was lost in the inferno that followed, and when the buggy landed the heat and shockwave rippled over us, snatching my breath away. The air was hot and it burned my eyes, but I turned to look into the fire like the other two. Death Gun's grinning mask was still staring at us when the fires roared up around him, hiding him from our view. I nudged Kirito with my toe. "Let's go before he figures out how to be fireproof as well as invisible."

Kirito nodded and we started moving again. Sinon was staring off into the distance, but it wasn't a stunned look in her eyes any more, which I was surprisingly thankful for. I guess I could understand, even if I didn't comprehend. She saw something that triggered her, and so she briefly lost the will to fight. All of that confidence that she had before the attack from Death Gun had disappeared, and it was because she saw the gun. Some sort of trauma in the past, definitely, related to guns. And it had to be that particular gun, because otherwise she wouldn't have ever managed to stay strong for this long. So, she was building up a shell in this world to protect...something, probably herself, in the real world. She thought that her shell could be strong enough in here that it would transfer over to the real world. And then, just like me, she found out that nope, it doesn't work that way. Problems in the real world carry over, but your strength doesn't. I learned that lesson the hard way. Oh well. She snapped out of it when Kirito helped her, so she should be fine now. As the pavement gave way to desert and we kept driving, I glanced over to see Sinon watching me. I raised an eyebrow, and she blinked suddenly before looking the other direction. Okay... That was weird.

She raised her wrist to glance at the time, and I was just hit by the _familiarity_ of the action. I mean yeah she'd looked at her watch before, but it was like déjà vu where I _knew_ it wasn't that. I felt like it was part of the important puzzle, that motion, but I couldn't focus on that and Sinon's issues and keeping an eye out for Death Gun, so I had to drop something. I couldn't focus, there were too many thoughts bouncing in my mind and I didn't have my music to scatter them and let the important ones come to the forefront. One thread was taken with the music that always played, and the rest of my processing power was filled with my other concerns. I just didn't have the ability to worry about some déjà vu.

Kirito slowed down and the buggy came to the halt. I briefly wondered why we were stopping in the middle of the open desert and then realized exactly why Sinon had been looking at her watch. Come to think of it, being caught out in the open was probably bad. "This isn't good," Kirito said, echoing my thoughts. "We're like sitting ducks out here." Get out of my head, Kirito. It's not a good place for sane people to be. "We need to find some cover."

Sinon looked around before pointing to our right. "Hey, I think I see a cave over there." Wow, her voice sounds strangely exhausted. Did firing that one bullet take that much out of her? Or no, Rythin, it was probably the emotionally-draining panic attack that she had suffered. "We hide inside, we can avoid the sat-scan."

I shrugged. "It's a plan."

Kirito nodded and hit the accelerator. "Sounds good. Let's go." The sun was still high in the sky, and I glanced at it. Didn't Sinon say it was starting at sunset? How long did sunset last? As we pulled into the cave, I hopped off and leaned against the wall, sliding down until I was sitting on the floor comfortably and enjoying the coolness of the stone. Kirito killed the engine and then stretched. "This is perfect," he said to Sinon with a sigh of relaxation. "We can dodge the scan and rest up too." Sinon just stood up without a word and walked over to the inner parts of the cave before sitting down more or less across from me. Kirito followed before stopping and turning back to look at the buggy. "What happened back there? It's like he just popped up out of nowhere."

I grimaced. "That is bullshit, by the way. He has some sort of invisibility cloak. How the hell was I supposed to know there was something like that in this game? Everyone's all 'Oh, let's just use real-life weapons' and shit and then boom, fuck you I'm invisible." Am I whining? I think I'm whining.

"We didn't see him on the scan," Kirito thought out loud. "Does the invisibility cloak thing hide him from that, too?" He turned back to Sinon. "Is there a skill like that here, invisibility or something like that?"

Sinon stared off into the distance, and I watched her carefully. If only I had some sort of... super-intuition or something like that, I could figure out what exactly her problem was. Meh, whatever. I'll worry about it later. "Yeah, there is," she sighed finally. "It's a skill called Metamaterial Optical Camouflage." Aaaaand that's where I draw the line. I'm just going to, uh, say he has a cloaking device. That works. "We're safe. For now anyway. Even if he is invisible, the sands are rough here. We'll hear it crunching under his boots." It works for me. I'm just glad to have a chance to relax in this stupid fight. "We'll see his footprints too, so he can't sneak up like he did before." Is this what I sounded like when I was busy fighting an attack of depression? No wonder Kana always looked so worried when it hit me.

"Roger that," Kirito said with a grin and a hint of a laugh. "Guess we'll keep our eyes _and_ ears open, then." He walked over where Sinon was sitting and dropped into a seated position easily a few steps from here.

There was a bit of an awkward silence - Kirito looked like he wanted to say something, Sinon was deep in thought, and I was, well, me. "Hey," Sinon said finally, and both Kirito and I looked at her. "Do you think there's a chance Death Gun was killed in that explosion?"

Kirito glanced at me, and I shook my head. I'd seen his horse get obliterated, but I hadn't seen any sign of Death Gun getting injured by my grenade. Besides, with an explosion like that, he was either chunks or he was just fine. "No," he said. "A second before that truck blew up, I saw him jump off of that robot horse." So that's what that was. "He might have gotten dinged up, but I can't believe the blasts killed him."

"Oh..." Sinon leaned her gun against the wall and crossed her arms on her knees. "When he had me in his sights back at the stadium, I thought I was a goner. How'd you two know I was in trouble? And how'd you get to me so fast from your position?"

Kirito grinned slightly before folding his arms behind his head and leaning back against the wall. "We were wrong about Musketeer X being Death Gun," he said. "Rythin maybe forgot to mention one tiny little detail." You're getting close to dangerous levels of smug, my friend. I'm the only one who should be exposed to levels of smug that high.

I rolled my eyes. "Give it a rest, Kirito. Besides, given your appearance I'm not making any assumptions about gender anymore." He glared at me. "Sinon, Musketeer X was.. is?" I glanced at Kirito, and he shook his head - he killed her. Damn, and I wanted my rematch. Oh well, I could regret not being able to go up against someone on my level later; I had other things to worry about for now. "Was female. According to Kirito, Death Gun's male." 1 not equal 0.

…One being the number of pe– okay yeah I'm just gonna stop that thought _riiiiight_ there before I think about things I don't want to think about.

"She was very clearly female," Kirito muttered, and I grinned as I remembered what exactly her battle outfit was. "It was kinda obvious, actually."

"Obvious?" Sinon asked, and Kirito flushed slightly while I just cupped my hands around my chest and mimed breasts. "Oh." She glared at Kirito slightly.

"Anyway," he said, "after I took out Musketeer X, I looked for you. Rythin and I had realized that you were in danger, so he took off after you while I continued after Musketeer X."

I shrugged. "When I got there, it was almost too late. If Kirito hadn't fired, or if Death Gun had ignored me..."

"I grabbed Musketeer X's rifle and grenades and charged in, shooting and throwing bombs as fast as I could," Kirito said.

Sinon stared at him, then looked down. "I can't believe I let my guard down..." she muttered. She hugged her knees and hid her face.

"Don't go beating yourself up over it," Kirito said. Sinon didn't respond. "I mean look. It's not like we knew he was hiding down there either. And if our roles were flipped, you know what? Rythin or I'd be the ones getting shot instead. But that's okay, because I know you would have rescued us too. Wouldn't you?" Kirito was actually a pretty good guy. He was a good foil to my method of being a dick more or less constantly. If I were in his place, I wouldn't really know what to say to Sinon. Hell, I still didn't, even after deciding she and I needed to have a little chat about her issue if she was going to come with us again. Sinon just hugged her knees tighter. Hm... she was probably misinterpreting why Kirito was saying what he was saying. "I'm heading out for a bit. You might as well kick back here and rest up while you can. I wish you could log out, but you can't. Not until the tourney's over anyway. Rythin, watch the cave?"

"Sure thing, boss," I said with a lazy mocking salute. "Your loyal guard dog is on duty." Then I frowned as he pulled out his sword. "Unless you're about to go do something stupid, in which case I'm coming with you. Remember, I promised Yui."

"Eheh..."

Sinon looked over, confused. Then her eyes hardened. "You're going after Death Gun, aren't you. You think you can take him on alone?"

"He's hardly alone," I said, cracking my neck. "I'll be there with him. Between the two of us, we can handle him."

"We can't involve you," Kirito said, looking down. "He's tough, and he won't go down without getting off a shot or two at me. If it comes down to that, I don't know what I'll do. I might bail, and I know Rythin won't stick around if his life's in danger." I nodded without taking offense; I had to return to Kana. I had promised her I'd never leave her. "I don't wanna leave you hanging like that. So it's better if we face him alone."

"Then..." Sinon breathed, "you're scared of him too?"

I shrugged. "We'd be insane not to be. I mean, more insane than I am."

"If it was the old me?" Kirito mused as he clipped his sword to his belt. "I would have jumped right in and fought him. Even if there was the chance I was gonna die." He shook his head and looked down. "But not anymore. These days, there's things I have to protect." His voice hardened. "I can't die. I don't want to."

"Things you have to protect?"

I nodded. "In both the virtual and real worlds. Places, things... People." Kirito's eyes met mine. "People that would be hurt if we weren't there."

"Okay, then," Sinon said, "don't go after him, just stay here and keep low." She sounded almost desperate. "As long as BoB's going on, we can't log out. But once the competition's whittled down to us and one other player, we can suicide out and let the other guy win." She was definitely broken; the Sinon I had known before that would never have suggested just giving up like that. "That'll end the tournament."

Still though, it wasn't a bad idea, except for the fact that Death Gun was interested in us and he'd never let us get away like that. And for the fact that Kirito was already shaking his head. "Yeah, I don't know. I mean, that's one way of doing it. Thing is..." he leaned back and looked at the cavern wall. "That's not really a good option. If we just sit here and wait for the tourney to end, there's no telling how many other players that guy's gonna kill." I didn't really care about that, but Kirito clearly did.

Sinon didn't reply for a bit, but eventually she just sighed and hung her head. "Yeah." She was silent, deep in thought. Kirito and I continued preparations to go Death Gun hunting. Be very, very quiet, we're hunting insane lunatics. As long as it's not rabbit season, we should be good. "I'm not gonna hide either," Sinon announced suddenly, and both Kirito and I looked at her in confusion. "I'm going outside, and help you take that bastard out."

"No you're not," Kirito snapped. "Haven't you been listening? If he shoots you, there's a chance you'll die. As players, close combat is my and Rythin's specialty. It's not yours." He shifted, slapping the ground with a hand. "You're in way more danger than us. Because he can be invisible if he wants. He'll pop up next to you, and bang!"

Sinon didn't even flinch. "I don't care if I die," she said. Kirito jerked back and gasped in shock. "I was scared out of my mind back at the stadium. I was scared I was gonna die." She gritted her teeth. "I was even weaker than I was five years ago." Okay, we've got another piece of the puzzle. Five years ago, she got into an incident, and a gun was involved. If I had someone that could maybe look up these things, that would be fantastic information, but nope I was stuck here in this game. Bleh. "Like a screaming, crying little girl. If that's how I'm gonna be for the rest of my life, I'd rather be dead." Hm. A poor reason to have a death wish, in my opinion. Though if I was weak, like I had been, I suppose I'd feel the same way.

I seem to be doing a lot of empathizing for someone without any empathy. Eh. Practice makes perfect, I suppose, and I've been trying to pretend better recently.

"It's only natural to be afraid," Kirito said. "I don't know anyone sane that's not afraid of dying." His eyes darted over to me for a second, and I just grinned at the qualifier. I suppose I don't count, then. Because to be fair, it's not dying that scares me, it's leaving Kana alone.

"Yeah, well, I hate it," Sinon snapped. Kirito had always been strong. It wasn't a surprise he couldn't understand what it was like to be weak. But I understood what she was saying; I understood it all too well. "I'm tired of being afraid." She buried her face in her knees again. "I'm so tired." She sighed. "Whatever. I'm not asking to go with you." Pushing herself to her feet, she stood up, eyes distant. "I'll fight by myself."

She turned to leave, and Kirito and I moved; he scrambled to grab her wrist, and I just stood up and leaned against the nearby rock, blocking Sinon's escape route. "You wanna fight alone... and die alone. Is that what you're saying?" Kirito asked.

Sinon grimaced. "Yeah. I was always supposed to die alone." She tugged, trying to get away from Kirito, but he wasn't about to let her go off and commit suicide by insane person. "Let go," she growled. "I have to do this."

"You got it all wrong," Kirito said. "There's no dying alone. It's not that simple." He stood up and approached her, Sinon turning to face him. "When you die, you leave a hole in the lives of all the people you were a part of. I almost learned that the hard way." I met his gaze steadily - I had forgiven him for what he did that Christmas a long time ago. "And like it or not, you're part of mine, now. Rythin's too, even if he won't admit it." I just smirked.

Sinon glared at him. "Yeah, well, I never asked to be a part of it." She looked down, her eyes shadowed. "Besides, my life's no one else's business but mine."

Kirito's eyes betrayed that smallest hint of irritation. "You're wrong," he said, lifting her wrist. "We're involved in each other's lives now."

Sinon gritted her teeth, and I smirked; finally, we managed to break through her shell of self-pity. That's always the hardest part to get through. When she snarled under her breath, I nodded - after her emotions played out, she'd feel better and we could get to talking. "Alright, then," she snarled, grabbing Kirito's coat with her free hand and drawing him close to her. "If that's how it is then you can protect me for the rest of my life!" I think she forgot I was even there. Either way, shouting now, we should be seeing tears in three... two... one... A few drops hit the cave floor and I nodded in satisfaction. There we go. I shifted back to where I had been sitting before - Sinon wasn't really a flight risk any more - and I took a look at her; she was crying, tears streaming down her face, but she wasn't completely broken. Not yet. But it was only a matter of time - the cracks would just keep getting larger and larger until her walls crumbled.

"You don't know anything!" she shouted, wrenching her hand away from Kirito's and hitting his chest with her closed fists. "And you can't do anything, so don't go saying stuff like that!" She beat his chest over and over again, an ineffective means of trying to take some of her emotions out on him. "This..." She hit him again, harder this time. Still, Kirito didn't budge. "This isn't your fight, it's mine! Mine, mine! You got that?! Even if I lose... Even if I die..." She leaned toward him, shuddering as her tears started flowing again. "No one can blame me for what I did." Part three of the puzzle - five years ago, gun, she did something bad. The image was starting to come together, and I could guess at what was remaining, but I didn't want to make a mistake. Sinon was just too volatile for me to screw this up. She looked up at Kirito, glaring at him through her tears. "You wanna help? You gonna carry this burden with me?" She clenched her fist and drew it up slowly, her hand shaking. And she's all but broken now.

"Then what, huh?" She closed her eyes and her voice dropped to a whisper. "You gonna hold my hands... even though they've got blood all over them?!" The last few words were shouted, and I blinked.

Bingo.

Sinon closed her eyes and choked back a sob, and I watched her. Five years ago, something happened. A gun was involved, and either by design or by accident, she killed someone with that gun. I doubted it was her fault - she was showing far too much agony for deliberately trying to kill someone. No, it was like she had PTSD of the incident, so I assumed she killed someone with a gun accidentally. Now, because she didn't react to any guns except that one, Death Gun's pistol was probably the one she had used. Strange, really. And as for why she wasn't over it, even after five years, she was - I'm guessing here, now - still pretty young, probably about Kirito or Sugu's age. So basically back five years ago she was in school surrounded by kids, and I knew as well as everyone else that kids are fucking assholes. So they probably taunted her about it constantly, isolating the poor girl. Social isolation plus issues equals bad things in the brain - I'm a sterling example of that, so I guess I understand where she's coming from. So, what do we have? Sinon, five years ago, accidentally killed someone with a gun. She was then ostracized by shithead kids and her PTSD kept getting worse until she found GGO. She was using the game as therapy, I'm assuming, until she saw the gun Death Gun uses and relapsed.

Kirito was more interested in trying to comfort her than figure out what exactly was wrong with her, so while she was beating on him while sobbing, he was taking it without flinching. As she finally broke down entirely and just leaned her head on his chest, sobbing, Kirito gently put a hand on her shoulder. Immediately, Sinon smacked it away. "Hate you!" she sobbed brokenly. "Hate your guts! Hate you..." She continued sobbing, clutching at him and slowly falling to her knees. Kirito glanced at me, and I just shook my head. We'd have to wait until she cried herself out. That was what worked for me, anyway.

The sun continued setting slowly, and by the time Sinon managed to calm down slightly it was on the edge of the horizon, about to dip behind the dunes. We had all transitioned to a seating position; Kirito was leaning against the wall, and Sinon was resting her head on his shoulder. I was just sitting against the other wall, one leg crossed over the other as I watched with crossed arms. "Even though I hate your guts," Sinon said quietly, as she slowly lowered her head to Kirito's lap, "can I borrow your lap for a sec?" Kirito just looked a little sad; was this how he looked when I was having one of my attacks? Silence reigned, and Kirito and I knew we had to wait for Sinon to say something. If she was going to open up, it would be now, and if we said anything it would only break her back into the shell. Then Sinon sighed, and I focused on her through half-closed eyelids. "I..." she started, "I...killed someone." Alright, go deductive reasoning. Kirito's eyes shifted so that he was giving her his full attention as well. "About five years ago, in a small town up north, this guy tried to rob a post office. The news said he died 'cause his gun went off accidentally, but... the truth is, I was there. I grabbed his gun...and shot him dead." I probably shouldn't be feeling so proud of myself for figuring it out when Sinon's over there pouring her heart out, but I can't help it.

"How old were you?" Kirito asked quietly.

"Eleven years old," she said, and I managed to restrain myself. I had even gotten the age thing right. "And ever since then, whenever I see a gun, I start throwing up, and then I pass out. If I see a gun, I see the face of the robber the way he looked right before he died." Yeah, okay, PTSD. I'd looked up the symptoms once out of curiosity - it had been thrown around a lot on TV talk shows by overpaid psychologists that thought they could understand what we had gone through in Aincrad. "And then I... I get so scared."

"Really?"

"Yeah..." I'm glad Kirito's handling this, because I'm really bad at handling fragile people. Maybe let him support her for a bit before I start saying stuff that's going to hurt. "But in this world? I don't have those problems. And that got me thinking. If I can become the strongest player in the game, then I'll be strong IRL too. Maybe even forget what I did." Her eyes were distant. "But," she breathed, "just now? I mean, when Death Gun had me pinned? I was terrified. And just like that, I wasn't Sinon anymore. I was the real me again." She brought her arm up and hugged herself. "I'm scared to die. I am... Although, what's worse is living with this fear. It's so painful I'd rather be dead." Sinon grimaced. "But I know, if I run away from Death Gun and my past..." She started trembling, her voice starting to break. "I'll end up weaker than before. I will, I know it."

"Yeah," Kirito said. "I get it." He shifted. "I killed someone once too." At his announcement, Sinon's eyes snapped open and I sighed almost imperceptibly. Almost, because Kirito gave me an apologetic smile, and I knew he had seen it. "I mentioned it once," he said. "About how I knew Death Gun. We fought before when we were stuck in another game." Ah, so this is where this is going. I looked outside at the setting sun, letting my eyes rove aimlessly around the small bit of sand that I could see. I just didn't want to look at Sinon and see pity. "I'm sure you've heard of it." His voice dropped to a near whisper. "Sword Art Online."

"Oh my god," Sinon murmured, "I knew it."

"Yeah," Kirito said. "I'm a survivor of SAO. So's Rythin. And so's Death Gun. And back then, he was a red player in this guild. They called themselves Laughing Coffin. PKers." The last word was spat, like it was some sort of vulgarity. He sighed. "They had to be stopped. So one day, a party was formed to catch them and haul them off to prison. I was in that party."

I sighed. "I masterminded the raid, and it was supposed to be clean. Get in, throw them in jail, and get out." I shook my head, almost surprised at how hoarse my voice sounded. "The intel was good, the raid party found Laughing Coffin. But something had gone wrong." Kirito's breathing started to shake, and he clutched at his arm. "Someone leaked information to them, or they had a spy in our midst... Whatever the source, Laughing Coffin found out about the plans and ambushed the raid party. It was..." I wasn't there, so I couldn't know. All I knew was that my plan had failed and it had gotten my friend hurt. It wasn't exactly one of my shining moments as the Tactician.

But Kirito was and did. "It was chaos," he said, his voice trembling. "And in the middle of the chaos, I k-killed two of Laughing Coffin, I just..." His voice was none too steady, and I was watching him carefully. "...cut them down." He took a deep breath, held it for a second, then exhaled slowly. "And over time," he said, his voice a little bit firmer, "I managed to force myself to forget what I did. Until yesterday, when I ran into the guy calling himself Death Gun." Well, that explains why he was so rattled during the preliminaries. The memories of killing those two players had come back to him at that point. I wonder, does Kuradeel's death bother him too?

…Come to think of it, he says he killed three people. But… didn't he kill four?

"And there's no doubt he was with Laughing Coffin that day? You're sure he was part of that ambush?" Sinon asked.

I shook my head, even though her eyes were locked on Kirito. "He had the tattoo. Only members of Laughing Coffin wore them, and only members of Laughing Coffin would wear one now."

"We've fought before," Kirito said. "I'm sure of it. As sure as I'll ever be. He's one of the players we took to prison that day. That's why..." His eyes hardened. "No matter what, I have to settle things with him in here. In this world."

He fell silent, and I leaned my head back against the wall and frowned. Who was Death Gun? Who had he been? I needed the information. I needed to know my enemy. If I had that... My lips curled into a slight feral grin. If I had that, then I could kill them.

* * *

My screens filled my vision as Yui pulled up file after file like Asuna had told her. Every forum post, every blog that even mentioned the cyberpunk game, Yui grabbed it and it appeared in front of me, ready to be sorted. I flicked through each one, just giving it a cursory glance before sorting it into the different categories. Forum, blog, newspaper, news site. As the files kept coming, I felt myself slowly start to get more and more frustrated. "This isn't…" I mumbled, trying not to snap at my cute little helper. "We need to narrow the parameters."

Yui looked at me innocently. "What parameters, Aunt Argo?" Well, that explains kind of a lot. I guess she really isn't good at information gathering after all. The sheer volume of data she can access is staggering, and she's remarkably good within her specialization – I'm not stupid, I know she helps Rythin out with his issues all the time – but other than that Yui just doesn't have the experience to know what should and shouldn't be added to the results. As an AI, however, her ability to connect the massive amounts of data is still staggering; if she could learn some techniques for searching for specific data, she'd be a research machine.

"Just mentioning GGO isn't good enough," I said, staring at the screens thoughtfully while sorting what was left over. "There's just too much volume. We need to sort it down. Let's see… If I knew when the incidents started, that might work. Yui, search for anything related to GGO and deaths." If it was a member of Laughing Coffin, he was probably trying to kill. Probably already managed to kill somebody, too. If he had, then someone would mention it online. If we got anything before when the first death was reported, we might have a lead.

"Okay!" Yui chirped, scrunching up her face adorably as she concentrated. I was poring over about ten different screens a moment later. "I'm sorry, that's all I could find," she said.

"Nothing to apologize for, Yui," I said absently as I closed a screen that was some idiot ranting on about how Death Gun was the harbinger of doom and how we were all going to die in the rapture. Religious nuts, honestly. "I didn't really expect to find much. If the way things are going now is any indication, all news of this is going to be as hushed up as possible."

"Why's that, Argo?"

I blinked as I came back to reality and realized that the girls and Klein had been watching me ramble to myself and Yui. "Because, Liz, the possible fallout is immense. If word gets out that there were mysterious deaths, the AmuSphere is going to tank." I knew I was assuming that there had been previous deaths, but it only made sense; Ry went into the game before Death Gun made this announcement, which meant that Death Gun had existed before and made the announcement previously. And since he made the announcement when he claimed to 'kill' Pale Rider, well… Let's just say that coincidences made me break out in hives.

Klein's eyes widened; I knew he'd get it first, since he works for a company. "And if rumors spread, the whole VRMMO genre is done for."

"And this time, there's no Seed to regrow it," I said with a grimace. "So everyone involved is going to be trying to keep this quiet for as long as possible." The next clue revealed itself, and I narrowed my eyes. "If I had to guess, that's why Ry and Kirito went into the game. To figure out what exactly this Death Gun guy was doing, and if he was killing them, how he was doing it by using a gun in-game. It wasn't even strong enough to kill Pale Rider's avatar, so how did it kill him in real life?" I wish I had the answer to that. Then I shook my head, realizing that Silica was trembling in Leafa's arms, and Klein had gotten lost in his own little world of horror. "Yui, let's get back to work." I didn't want to scare them.

Maybe if I searched for Death Gun…

* * *

 **This chapter and the next are probably going to be a little shorter. I mean, yeah, Cave Talking Simulator 2015 is important for plot and character development reasons, but it's hardly exciting. Still, it's one of those things where it _needs_ to happen; first off, Sinon finally opens up to someone willing to listen to her. That's good. What I enjoyed writing about it the most is Rythin's view on the whole emotional backstory-sharing thing - he doesn't care. Not in the slightest. He's more interested in putting together the clues and solving the puzzle than he is in understanding why she's so upset by what happened. It's just another way he's a little detached from the normal human response.**

 **Good news is, though, we get more Kana next chapter, so yay! Seeing the world from the point of view of a rational, functioning human being! Yay!**

 **Many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.**


	9. Meaning of Strength

**Chapter 9: Meaning of Strength**

* * *

 **December 14** **th** **, 2025**

"We've fought before," Kirito said. "I'm sure of it. As sure as I'll ever be. He's one of the players we took to prison that day. That's why..." His eyes hardened. "No matter what, I have to settle things with him in here. In this world."

He fell silent, and I leaned my head back against the wall and frowned. Who was Death Gun? Who had he been? I needed the information. I needed to know my enemy. If I had that... My lips curled into a slight feral grin. If I had that, then I could kill them.

Sinon was the first person to break the silence when she sighed. "So... Death Gun was in Laughing Coffin," she murmured, eyes closed with her head still on Kirito's lap. "And you guys fought before." Kirito was staring off into the distance, but he blinked when Sinon straightened up and placed her hands on his shoulders. "Kirito," she said, and her voice was a little more alive. "I need to know something. It's about the people you killed." My eyes hardened ever so slightly as I watched her, and she looked down slightly. "How did you get over what you did?" she asked desperately. I smiled slightly. Irony is always funny. "How are you not affected by it?" Kirito just blinked, surprised. "How are you so strong you're not controlled by it?"

The two stared at each other before Kirito finally shook his head. "I haven't gotten over it," he said quietly.

Sinon jerked back, clearly shocked by his words. "What?" she gasped.

"Last night," Kirito began slowly, "I kept having nightmares about the three guys I killed. I hardly slept at all." Eyes closed, he gritted his teeth. "I saw their faces right before they vanished. I heard their voices." He opened his eyes and looked up at Sinon sadly. "Their words." Was this what it was like to feel guilt and regret? Maybe I'm better off without those things, if it would mess me up this badly. "I don't think I'm ever going to forget them."

Sinon drew in a shuddering breath. "But then..." She looked down. "What am I supposed to do?" she breathed. "I..." Her shoulders shook, and she hunched over. "I can't..."

Her hands trembled on Kirito's shoulders, and he gently reached up to cover them with his own. "It's okay," Kirito said, soothing her. She looked up with a gasp. "I think that's probably how it should be." He glanced over her shoulder at me. "I get it now," he said. "There are things I shouldn't forget. What it means to kill, the significance of taking a life." I'm not really sure if he was talking to me, to Sinon, or to himself, but she was eating up his words regardless. "And once I accept it, maybe then I'll be able to find some closure. That's how I see it."

"Closure," Sinon breathed, "by accepting it?" She exhaled, looking down, and her hands slipped from Kirito's shoulders. "Rythin?"

"Hm?" My voice was a little rusty from not really using it for a while.

"You were one of the players in Sword Art Online too, weren't you?"

I nodded slowly, and Sinon turned to look at me. "I was."

She looked away. "Did you ever..."

"Did I kill?" Sinon nodded, and I tilted my head back to look at the roof of the cave. "Yeah. I killed. Four people." I shrugged jerkily. "I don't remember who they were, what they look like, or anything like Kirito described." I sighed before barking out a humorless laugh. "I just live my life, continuing on."

Sinon stared at me, searching my face for something. I wasn't really sure what. "How?" she demanded. "How can you just accept it and move on like nothing happened?"

I locked gazes with Kirito, and his eyes looked a little sad. "Because I'm a monster," I said quietly.

Kirito was the first to look away.

"What?" she breathed.

"A monster," I repeated. "I accept it and move on because it meant nothing to me. Killing them wasn't a huge terrible ordeal like it was for you or Kirito, killing those people was just a faster path than going around them." I inhaled, and then sighed. "I act like nothing happened because to me nothing _did_. I'm not human, Sinon. Like Death Gun. I don't - can't care at all that I've killed someone, and I don't feel regret or guilt for my actions. They're in the past and they can't be changed, so..." I shrugged. "Why bother worrying about it?"

Sinon stared at me. "What _are_ you?"

I smirked slightly, but it was a little sad. "I told you. A monster." I shifted my position slightly and stretched my legs out. "I guess sociopath or psychopath works as a descriptor, though it's not really what I am. I've got no empathy for others and anger issues, but beyond that I don't fit the medical definition." I closed my eyes. "I masterminded the raid on Laughing Coffin," I said, my voice falling into a storytelling cadence slightly. I knew I was a bad storyteller, but I knew some of the tricks to keep people's attention. "I gathered the intel, came up with the plan, and sent off all the fighters with a smile and a wave." I waved in Kirito's general direction. "It didn't work out so well. But I didn't know about any of that until much later, when I talked to Asuna about the incident." I opened my eyes and looked at the two players on the other side of the cave. "Because I didn't participate. Because I went off to challenge a dungeon on my own." A small grin tugged at my lips. Was that the right expression for this? "Because I was busy killing a madman."

Kirito's eyes widened. "Your eyes," he murmured. "They were flat."

So he remembers that day? Makes sense, now that his memory of the killing was coming back, it wouldn't be hard for him to remember the aftermath. I had gone to see him when the raid returned; he told me he killed, and I assured him that so long as he still cared he was better off than me. "It was coincidence more than anything, really," I said, seeing the old creaking house in my mind's eye again. "Argo had mentioned a dungeon that had managed to wipe out most of the players that had entered it, and so I in my infinite arrogance decided to test myself against it." I had still been searching for strength in anything I could find, and that seemed like a good place to find it. Foolish me. "It wasn't really a dungeon, though. It was just a large mansion in the middle of a forest that a player had purchased."

Sinon blinked. "But..."

I shrugged. "He was a member of Laughing Coffin. He had been luring people in by spreading the word that his house was actually a dungeon, and once they were in there he'd lock the door and then slaughter them one by one." Argo had apologized profusely when I returned - she had been convinced it was a dungeon, since most players don't die in a house, after all. "He enjoyed it, just like Death Gun - his favorite part was seeing the fear in their eyes when he finally pounced." The scary part was, I could understand him now - the fun part to me was the instant when I proved I was the superior hunter, that they couldn't possibly escape. The thrill that went through my body when that occurred was almost intoxicating; it also didn't help that I enjoyed the violence itself. At least I wasn't getting pleasure from pain, yet – I wasn't a sadist like the guy in the house, nor was I a masochist. In terms of emotional pleasure, not sexual, of course, because I don't swing any way. "I wasn't alone when he trapped me, though." The eyes of my listeners widened, and I nodded slowly.

"It's strange, really, the kinds of coincidences that happen." I cracked a grin. "The other person with me was a girl I actually knew in real life." The name she went by in the game was Tesseract. I leaned back and ran my hand through my hair, sighing. "She was the first person to die to this madman – well, not his first victim, but the first that I knew of. After she did, I realized that our 'host' was a member of Laughing Coffin and I killed him." My eyes narrowed. "He came hunting me, and in return I hunted the hunter. He entered my lair and I had traps ready for him, some lethal, some merely designed to restrain. It was a game of spy versus spy and the loser would die. I had to become… less than human and more, simultaneously, just to survive. In the end, I got lucky. I restrained him with a trap and killed him. It wasn't a clean death, he didn't deserve that." My voice dropped slightly. "He deserved to die like a dog and he did, ranting and raving while thrashing against his bonds. I poisoned him and watched him slowly die, heartbeat by heartbeat. And I didn't feel a thing."

Kirito frowned. His eyes seemed sad, for some reason. "Rythin..."

"I needed to be cold to kill him," I said. "I smashed my humanity to bits and..." I shook my head. "I don't care anymore. I was already a little broken to start with, and when I sacrificed my humanity to kill him, I think it was permanent." I sighed. "I think that if Tesseract had survived, we would have been friends. Good friends." Kirito knew how much that meant to me, but Sinon didn't. Still, it was important to say it. "But I don't really care that she's dead. I don't care that I killed that man, I don't care about the three other people that I killed without hesitating." I shook my head. "So, Sinon, I've gotten over killing those people because it never mattered to me in the first place."

"Oh," she said, sighing and lying back down on Kirito's lap.

"You want to know what strength is?" I asked the air, knowing it was rhetorical. "I can't tell you. I'm just somebody that's so broken I don't remember what weakness is. I fear, but I'm not scared, if that makes any sense." My paranoia was almost always active, but I was only ever scared of losing Kana. "You're already stronger than I am, Sinon. You're trying to get stronger, just like I did a while ago. All I can do is tell you what I learned – that if you really want to be strong, you have to be strong in both the virtual and the real worlds." For me, that strength was Kana – knowing she was there, no matter what, gave me the confidence to, well, exist. To do anything without guessing and second guessing and triple guessing.

…And if I was going to be grudgingly honest with myself, everyone in our little friend group was part of my life now, and I cared about them.

Still, without them, and Kana in particular, I was one of the weakest people I knew – in terms of emotional strength, of course. "I can't tell you where or how to find it, but I think you can figure that out on your own. The person you are in here might not be the person you are out there, but… the two of you probably can help each other out some."

Sinon gave me a small smile. "Thanks, Rythin."

I shrugged. "Sorry," I said. "I know it wasn't what you were looking for. If it's any consolation, I'll tell you the same thing I told Kirito." She looked at me, and I grinned slightly. "Feeling guilty is good. Feeling guilty means you're still well-adjusted."

Sinon snickered slightly. "If this is well-adjusted, I'd hate to think how bad I'd be if I wasn't." Well, at least she still had a sense of humor about it. That meant that I hadn't ruined the little moment with my whole sob story.

The wind outside howled, scattering sand around while hopefully erasing the buggy tracks, while we sat inside, brooding. Well, I brooded; the other two just kinda sat there silently. Suddenly, Sinon shivered. "Death Gun..." Kirito and I made a small sound of confusion, and she said, "It's hard to believe that under that cloak there's a real-life person who just wants to kill."

"Yeah," Kirito said.

I shrugged. "I get it, though. To people like me and him, it's addicting. The rush is everything." Then I sighed. "Okay, Rythin, enough with the crazy. Kirito, do you remember him?"

He shook his head. "If only I could remember his handle," he muttered. "Then I'm sure we could figure out his name and address in the real world." Not exactly what Kikuoka hired us for, but close enough to the job description that I'd be willing to go along with it. "That's the reason we logged into GGO." Damn it, Kirito, stay out of my head.

Sinon looked down. "Oh... Then, maybe his reason for being here is because he likes to PK. Maybe he misses the rush of doing it from SAO. You think?"

I nodded. "Likely. But there's more to it. He's showboating, getting attention. It's more like he wants people to know he exists."

Kirito nodded. "He killed XeXeeD and Tarako in front of a bunch of witnesses. It was the same with Pale Rider." Kirito gritted his teeth. "He always picks the times when he's got the biggest audience. And that sign of the cross he makes, I bet it's to freak out his targets. He wants you to believe he's got the power to kill you from within the game." His eyes narrowed. "But it's all a show."

Sinon looked up at him. "But if that's true, how's he killing people?"

I shook my head. "It's not through brain damage, like the original NerveGear. According to the official report, XeXeeD and Tarako died of heart failure." Something popped, and I looked over to see a weird red pool of... something in the cave. Looks like blood. Gross. Cool. Gr-ool.

"Heart failure?" Sinon gasped, shuddering slightly. "My god."

"To be honest," Kirito said, crossing his arms, "the thought of firing a gun in the virtual world and stopping a player's heart in the real one... There's no way that's possible."

I frowned thoughtfully and started gnawing at my thumbnail. "But he's claiming he can kill people just by shooting them with that pistol of his." Then I frowned, this time in realization. "Kirito, wait. You got shot when you were approaching us to rescue Sinon, right?"

"Yeah..." Then his eyes widened. "Oh, hang on. _That_ was weird." I grinned; seems like he figured out what I had just realized.

"What was?" Sinon asked, looking back and forth between us.

"Back there in the ruins," Kirito said, "he had his handgun out for you, but he switched to the rifle for me and Rythin."

I nodded. "But the weapon that kills players with just a single bullet? That's the handgun. He already had it out, and Kirito was in no position to block or dodge it..." I raised a finger. "So why didn't he use it on Kirito? Or me? We were in his way, and killing us would have made it so much easier to kill Sinon."

"So why'd he switch?" Sinon asked, turning to lie on her stomach, resting her chin on Kirito's leg. Kirito looked at her, eyes narrowed, and I followed his gaze to where her pistol was holstered.

That wasn't the only thing near that area, and I coughed. "Kirito, her eyes are up there." He flushed and looked away; Sinon just looked at me in confusion. "Anyway, he didn't shoot us because conditions hadn't been met. He hadn't crossed himself first, and so that meant he couldn't shoot us. If he shot us with the pistol, we wouldn't die."

Kirito brought a hand to his chin. "The handgun... Can't use it though... The switch... The crossing himself thing... Invisibility cloak... Conditions, rules..." Is that what I sound like when I'm figuring something out and babbling out loud? Huh. Let's see if I can't follow his train of thought, shall I? He uses the handgun to kill. However, he couldn't use it on us, so he switched to his rifle. He crossed himself for some reason before he killed someone, so that was definitely important. He used the invisibility cloak to get into position before stunning them. And there were certain conditions and rules that had to be followed before he could kill with the pistol. Conditions that had been fulfilled for Sinon, but not me or Kirito. So it wasn't the gun, it was the user. "Knew it," Kirito muttered. "In-game guns can't kill IRL. Shooting the gun in here isn't what does it. It takes preparation." Yes, but what preparation?

"Now you lost me," Sinon said.

Maybe if I hum a few bars I can fake it. I raised a finger. "Death Gun's goal is to make it seem like he's killing people simply by shooting them once with his pistol. Now, that obviously isn't the case, because if it was then he would have just shot me and Kirito with it and killed us in the brief clash. So. That tells us that he's doing something else that kills the players. He sets up the murder in the real world first, then triggers something in-game that causes the trap to spring." I raised a second finger. "The trigger is the gunshot. Every time a player dies, he has been shot by Death Gun's pistol. So pulling the trigger causes something to happen that results in the real-world murder."

"How would he set something like that up?" Sinon demanded. "I mean, if you're right, he'd have to get a player's real-life information to do it! All that stuff's secure, though."

 _Click._ Another piece of the puzzle slotted into place, and the image formed. "Death Gun only appeared after the second BoB, right?" I asked, and Kirito nodded. I smirked. "Sinon, did people enter their real information in that tournament as well? At the terminals at the governor's office, players can enter their information to receive prizes, and there's the opening."

Kirito's eyes widened. "It's an open space, you don't have any privacy there!"

Sinon gasped. "No way," she said. "You saying he peeked over their shoulders while they entered their info? That can't be it, because all of the data is obscured when you look at it! And even if it wasn't, you'd notice it if someone was right behind you."

 _Click._ "Only to direct sight," I said. "If there's any sort of distortion, then the censoring doesn't work." Asuna had told us about that, how she was able to get the code to the gilded birdcage by watching the reflection as Sugou punched it in. I was willing to bet the same principle applied here. "And as for your second objection, he has a sniper rifle. He can see from across the room. Hell, Kirito has binoculars and can do the same thing."

"That's breaking etiquette," Sinon pointed out. "He'd get his ass kicked out of the game for that."

 _Click._ "What if he couldn't be spotted doing that?" I asked, raising a finger. "He has an invisibility cloak, remember? If he can use that in town..." I had a feeling he could. Invisibility magic could be used in towns in Alfheim, and since that used the Seed to run...

"He'd be right there and you wouldn't even know it," Sinon murmured. "But still, he can't do anything in the real world when he's logged in here, he's unconscious there."

"Right," Kirito muttered. My eyes narrowed. That was something I hadn't figured out yet. I could tell it had something to do with the crossing himself, but why? What significance did it have to - "Wait!" Startled, I followed Kirito's line of sight and saw a small purple lizard drinking from the pool of red gook. Its twin tails moved as -

 _Click._ "Oh fuck me," I breathed. We were operating on a faulty assumption.

"Yeah, that's it," Kirito snarled. "It's not just him!"

"Death Gun isn't just one person," I growled. "He's got a partner."

Sinon stared at us, mouth open, and Kirito said, "Check it out. One of them plays as the Death Gun avatar. His job is to shoot the target. At the same time in the real world, the second person's in the target's apartment. His job's to take the player out!"

I chuckled. "Very creative."

Sinon sat up, staring at Kirito. "Okay, but... let's say they found out your address. What about the other people living there? And, they'd need a key."

I shook my head. "So far, every person that Death Gun is known to have killed lived alone. Both XeXeeD and Tarako were bachelors, and I'm willing to bet that Pale Rider lives alone as well."

"And as for the key," Kirito added, "XeXeeD and Tarako lived in older buildings. The locks on their doors were probably first gen, not very secure."

"Besides," I said, waving a hand absently, "they were in the game. Not like they could hear someone breaking in or anything." I smirked sadistically. "One hundred percent unconscious, one hundred percent helpless. The perfect target for assassination. The killer could take their time getting in, make sure they didn't leave a trail, stuff like that."

Sinon looked shaken, but she was still game to play devil's advocate. "B-but then, you said the cause of death was heart failure, right?" she said. "So how'd they stop someone's heart in a way both the cops and the coroner couldn't figure out?"

I smiled. "Ever eat a banana?" She nodded, and I clapped my hands together, tilting my head slightly. "There you go, you're at risk for an untraceable heart attack, congratulations. Enough potassium in the system, and heart failure is right around the corner. As a bonus, it's nearly impossible to catch. My guess is, Death Gun used some sort of drug that's untraceable. Put it in their system, they die, nobody's the wiser."

"Okay, but," Sinon said, "someone should have found evidence of it! A mark, or something!"

Kirito shook his head. "They didn't find the bodies for a while, so they were pretty decomposed." Sinon scrunched her nose up. "Besides, a hardcore gamer can go for days without eating or sleeping. I doubt anyone would think it's weird if someone died of a heart attack after that."

Sinon grabbed Kirito's coat, and I focused on her. She seemed to be starting to panic slightly. "They're crazy! Right? I mean, why else would anyone do this?"

"Maybe..." Kirito said. "Or maybe...they do it because red players is who they really are."

I sighed. "Sword Art Online was like..." I tried to pick a term that wasn't cliché, like calling it a crucible. "It was like a crucible," I said when I failed. "Some people came out stronger, others came out cracked. Kirito's one of the ones that got stronger. Death Gun's one of the ones that broke. Deep down, Kirito's a swordsman. That's why he fights with his little lightsaber." I shrugged. "Deep down, I'm a mercenary. I do what I'm paid to do and that's about it." I'm about as self-serving as they come, but I do follow some sort of code, twisted as it may be. Once my word is given, I will _not_ break it. "So if Death Gun thinks of himself as a red player, he'll go to any lengths to be able to be himself."

"When you put it that way, I can kinda understand," Sinon said, eyeing her gun propped up against the wall. "There's times when I feel like I'm a real sniper, not a gamer." Ah, virtual reality. Making us all so delightfully twisted since Aincrad. Then she frowned. "Wait. Do you think the guy doing the killing's a red player too? Y'know, like Death Gun?" It was certainly possible. Both parts of Death Gun needed to be willing and able to kill, after all.

"Yeah," Kirito said. "They were probably in Laughing Coffin together." He looked at me. "I'm still wondering how they coordinated the killings in this world and the real one. How are they so precise about it?"

I had a glimmering of an idea. "Sinon?" She let go of Kirito and turned to face me, and I said, "Could you check the time, please?" Confused, she raised her wrist to glance at the watch and I reached out, snatching her wrist. _Click._ Calmly, almost reverently, I moved her hand down then to the left and right - making the sign of the cross. She shuddered before staring at her hand. "That's why he does the cross," I said triumphantly. "He wears a watch and he checks the time." And it looks kinda cool, I had to admit. "In a livestream like this, I bet his partner's just watching the feed, waiting for him to appear and shoot someone. But for XeXeeD and Tarako, I bet they had a timeframe all set up."

"You're right," Sinon breathed.

Almost fearfully, Kirito reached out and grabbed her shoulders, turning her to face him. "Sinon," he said. "Do you live alone?"

Ohhh... Right. Sinon was about to be shot. "Uhm," Sinon managed to get out, "yeah. But I'm sure I locked my door. My building's got first gen locks, but I've also got a... chain..." She inhaled sharply. "I think I left the chain off tonight." I exhaled quietly. So our hypothesis seemed to be coming true so far. …Wait, hadn't I entered my own data? Except I don't fit any of the criteria for being a target, so my cat should be fine. If one of Death Gun's partners touches him, though, I'll take my pound of flesh.

"Oh man," Kirito muttered. "Listen," he said, staring straight at her. "You're not going to like this." The sun finally set, and the cave was filled with a strange purple light as shadows washed over the desert. "When Death Gun was chasing us on that horse, he wasn't shooting at me or Rythin. And that could only mean one thing."

"They've picked out their next target," I said. "And they're ready to execute their plan."

"O-okay," Sinon mumbled. "And...who's next?" I think she knew.

"I got a feeling that, right now in the real world," Kirito said, "Death Gun's partner's in your place. He's watching a livestream, waiting for when you get shot by that gun." Sinon stiffened, sucking in a trembling breath, and Kirito rushed to finish. "It's just a hunch."

There was a crunching sound, and I looked over to see a scorpion stabbing the lizard thing in the side. Hey, little scorpion buddy. I like you, you're pretty cool. Wonder if Alfheim has anything like that? I could use a little monster buddy, since I _was_ a Cait Sith and Alicia had hinted it was kinda our thing the last time I met her for discussion about a job – and snacks, snacks were always good with the Cait Sith, almost as good as the nap time I could usually get there. They had dedicated outdoors sleeping sections, and those sun-warmed beds were fantastic and there were always a few Cait Sith snoozing in the sun and Alicia had a few in the private parts of the Lord's Quarters. And I got to use them when I was on her payroll. It was _awesome_.

Oh, right, dealing with this place now, not Alfheim. I looked back at Sinon to see her stiff as a board, shaking. To be fair it was probably terrifying, realizing that someone was in your house, watching you sleep. Part of why I always slept facing the door. That man would waiting patiently with a needle, just waiting for the livestream to show Sinon getting shot with that single bullet. That would be all and then he would gently insert the needle. "No!" Sinon stammered. "No, not that!" She brought her arms up to hug herself, but even that couldn't stop the shaking. "Oh god!" She was shaking and whimpering, and I had a feeling she was having a panic attack at the thought of Death Gun killing her. The wide eyes, panting, and staring into nothingness was kind of a clue. And if she was having a panic attack, her heart rate would rise and the AmuSphere would forcefully log her out. Problem was, if she woke up and saw Death Gun's partner, she'd be killed almost instantly.

So I did the best thing I could think of – that is, adding a little Vitamin K to her diet. I moved over in front of Sinon, grabbed her by the shoulders, spun her slightly so that she was facing Kirito, and shoved. Reacting with that unthinking chivalry of his, Kirito caught the girl in a hug. "Calm down!" he said. "If you log out now, you'll be in danger!" From what I could see, her pupils had dilated slightly, but her breathing had stabilized. "Just calm down. Go easy." After a few seconds, her eyes returned to normal, and I nodded, giving Kirito a grin. Sinon slumped, suddenly, going boneless; Kirito just refreshed his grip, tightening the hug. "Until Death Gun shoots you," he said, "the guy in your place isn't going to do anything, okay? That's the rule they set up for themselves." And if I know someone's rules, I can use it against them. Just like how Kirito couldn't ignore a girl in trouble, and I used that to keep Sinon alive. "But if you log out now and you wake up now with his partner there, he'll kill you." Uh, yeah, great bedside manner there, Kirito. "So you have to calm down," he murmured.

A few whimpers came from the blue-haired girl. "I'm scared," Sinon said, pulling away so she could look at Kirito. "I'm so scared," she said as she buried her face in his chest, clutching at him. Kirito just gently started rubbing her back, letting her find comfort in his presence.

And I was just casually sitting over on the other side, watching all this go down. Hey, better than reality TV.

* * *

Asuna had returned at some point while I was doing my research; I had just looked up and she was sitting there, arms folded on her lap. Evidently she had managed to get in contact with Kikuoka quickly. As for me and Yui, we had managed to finish finding most things of importance, and I had a feeling I'd be able to catch Kikuoka in any of his lies. I was currently sitting at the bar, nursing one of Klein's beers; he'd tried to object when I grabbed one, but I just gave him one of my _looks_ and he subsided. It had been a long day and I just didn't give a rat's ass about the legal drinking age - I think he got it, really, or he would have stopped me. The livestream had been showing a few different battles, but none of them were Rythin or Kirito, so I wasn't paying all that much attention; besides, it was currently just showing a desert. And in any event, I had my computer recording the whole thing, so I could always go back and watch it later if I missed something. Suddenly, a knock sounded at the door and we all looked over curiously. The door opened and a male Undine was standing there. Suddenly I put two and two together and sighed, slamming my head onto the table. I recognized that face.

Kikuoka, a.k.a. Chrysheight, was an SAO beta tester. Fuck everything.

"Jeez, Chrysheight," Liz snapped, "took you long enough."

He entered and shut the door behind him. "Sorry guys," he said. "I booked it over here as fast as I could from my save point." He grinned, walking around to stand in front of the girls. "If there was a speed limit in ALO, my license would have gotten suspended," he said with a chuckle. Then he realized that nobody else was really smiling along with him.

Asuna stood up and strode over to him. "What is going on?" she snapped.

Chrysheight looked like he didn't want to answer, but Asuna was not going to take no for an answer. "Better answer the lady, Chrysheight," I called out. "If you don't tell us, I will." My eyes narrowed. "And with what I've been able to piece together, I think there's a few things you don't want us knowing."

He coughed and looked away. "I'd be happy to explain in detail," he said.

I snickered. "Good choice."

"But I should warn you, it might take a while." He looked to the side. "To tell the truth, I'm not even sure where to begin -"

"Oh, don't even!" Asuna snapped.

"Not to worry!" Yui said, flying over and landing on the table, glaring at Chrysheight. "Aunt Argo and I know just where to start!"

I swiped open my menu and opened my notes. "On November 9th, in a certain VRMMO known as Gun Gale Online, GGO for short, a player calling himself Death Gun fired his gun at an avatar appearing on a monitor."

Yui balled up her fists and planted them on her hips. "That same day, in Nakano Ward, the player of that avatar mysteriously died." We had figured that out by finding Death Gun's little speech, then searching for any sudden deaths in the obituaries for that day. Pretty easy, once we knew what to look for. The link just popped right up.

I grinned sharply. "There's more! Another suspicious death showed up a few days later." Again, that one was pretty simple; since I already had the first link in the chain, I just needed to tug on it and see what else was connected.

Yui nodded. "That's right! Another person died suddenly, just like the first. According to his logs, he was a regular player of GGO as well." That bit was Yui hacking through the firewalls. Not exactly what I'd consider good information gathering, but it got the job done. "All pattern analysis indicates that he was likely killed in the same manner as the first avatar - he was shot in the game by a player calling himself Death Gun, then reportedly disappeared from the game after exhibiting symptoms similar to those of XeXeeD."

Chrysheight was staring at Yui, flabbergasted. "Young lady," he said, "that was unbelievable!" He straightened up, rubbing at his head. "You and Argo. Gathering all that information and connecting it so quickly, you two are quite the researchers. Have you two ever thought of careers in the VR section?" Both Asuna and I glared at him simultaneously, and he raised his hands in surrender. "Whoa, you win! I'm sorry, I'm not going to stonewall you, promise! Just complimenting the ladies, that's all." Then he turned to Asuna, and his glasses caught the light, turning into shining discs. Oh, right, Rythin mentioned that he did that a lot. Surprisingly impressive. "They're right, though," he said. "It's true."

"Yo!" Klein called from his spot at the bar. "Chrysheight, or whatever!" He glared at the Undine. "I hear you're the one that hired Kirito and Rythin to dive into that game. So let me get this straight, you got them to convert over _knowing_ that a player got shot in the game and _died_ IRL because of it?!" he shouted, standing up from his chair. He actually was pretty reliable. I guess it explains why he's one of Kirito's best friends – and why Rythin respects him slightly. Actually, come to think of it, Ry's been treating everyone like friends recently, hasn't he?

"Easy, Klein, I can explain," Chrysheight said, raising a single hand. Somehow he was doing the shining glasses thing even without a light source in front of him. Definitely impressive. "That's not how the player died."

"Then..." Klein sputtered, the wind taken out of his sails. "How?"

"It's not the AmuSphere rig," Chrysheight said, and I think everyone in the room except for Leafa relaxed slightly. "No matter what happens to you in-game, it can't hurt you. And it certainly can't stop a player's heart when it's not even directly connected to it." He blinked. "As a matter of fact, Kirito, Rythin and I met just last week to discuss it and we determined it was more or less impossible. Rythin had some idea regarding a sudden influx of terror or something similar causing a heart attack, but that's still beyond the realm of possibilities right now." I grinned. Yeah, that sounds like Rythin, all right. "There's no way anyone can kill another person in real life by shooting them in the game."

Klein stiffened and slumped back into his bar stool; I wordlessly grabbed another beer and handed it to him. He took a big swig absently. Yeah, he definitely understood why I had wanted one earlier. "Okay then," Leafa said. "If what you say is true, how come you had my brother and Nick dive into GGO for you, huh?" It was so adorable the way she tried to hide how close she and my boyfriend were. She probably just didn't want Lisbeth teasing her about it – but she was using Ry's real name, just like she used Kirito's. She stood up. "You had a hunch something was wrong." Then she shook her head. "Scratch that. You _know_ something's wrong. That Death Gun guy's a part of it." Her eyes narrowed. "And I bet you sent them in to try and find him!"

Chrysheight didn't answer right away, and Asuna's eyes narrowed. "Chrysheight!" she snapped. "We figured it out. Death Gun is an SAO survivor too, just like us." And not like Chrysheight - I knew what Kikuoka looked like, and this face wasn't his. The face was that of an old SAO beta avatar being transferred to Alfheim. "But unlike us, he was a red player who was in a guild of killers called Laughing Coffin."

Chrysheight stiffened, lips moving silently before he tried again. "You sure he was with them?"

I nodded. "Almost certainly," I said. "I don't know if you were watching the livestream, but he used a phrase that only someone in that guild would dare use."

"None of us can remember his name," Asuna said. "Klein and I met him once, when our group went to capture his." And that particular operation went belly-up. I once again reminded myself to figure out if Seere was playing in Alfheim and if he was, to ruin the little bastard; betraying the raiders to Laughing Coffin was just dirty. There was a reason none of the info brokers would sell to them.

"Um," Liz said, "hey Asuna? I get the feeling Chrysheight knows more than he's letting on. No offence, Chrysheight, but all we know is you work for the government doing something with networks." The MIAC – Ministry of Inner Affairs and Communications, if I'm recalling the acronym correctly. I think Rythin knew something more, but he refused to tell me, saying he wasn't entirely certain himself. "And that you play ALO as part of some research you're doing on MMOs." She glanced at me, and I nodded; I tried to make a point of keeping my information from spilling between the worlds, but this was an emergency. I shared what I had.

"Only for the past year," Chrysheight said, adjusting his glasses. A year back would be... the end of the Aincrad incident. "The job I had before was a little... different." If he only started after Aincrad ended, then that would mean...

"The Sword Art Online Taskforce," I said, resting my chin on my palm. "Right?" I knew he had influence – my NerveGear came from him through Rythin – and that meant he was pretty high up on the food chain. High up enough, in fact, to justify asking Rythin and Kirito to go out and try to figure out who this Death Gun guy is. Maybe even a little bit higher than where he claimed to be.

The girls and Klein stiffened when Chrysheight nodded. "But, even though we were called the Taskforce, in the end we were pretty ineffective." I snorted; Rythin had told me about how useless they were at tracking the three hundred missing players. Liz glared at him too - I think she was pretty mad about the whole thing as well.

"Chrysheight," Asuna said. "You're obviously well-connected, and with a little digging you could find out what the real-life name and address of this Death Gun is." That was what I had figured they were doing - send in Kirito and Rythin to find out what the guy's name was, then use that to track him down.

I grinned sharply. "So it's easy, right? Make a list of all the surviving Laughing Coffin members, and figure out which ones have been playing GGO through the ISP." Then my eyes narrowed. "Only it's not so easy as that, because otherwise you would have done that the second we confirmed he was a member of Laughing Coffin."

Chrysheight nodded to me. "That's not possible. The ISPs aren't going to give out a player's real-life info if all we have to go on are their handles."

"Maybe if we ask the game's admins," Silica said, "they could help."

Chrysheight looked at her. "They might, but GGO's admins are in the US, so it'd be a while before we got an answer." Asuna stiffened, glaring at Chrysheight; I couldn't help but fall on her side. Kikuoka and his entire team had managed to screw this up spectacularly.

"I know my brother, and I know Nick," Leafa said suddenly, and we all looked at her. "And right now, they're risking their lives in that game, trying to find out who this person is." She clasped her hands together. "When Kazuto came home last night, he had this look on his face, like he'd seen a ghost. He must have bumped into the guy yesterday during the prelims." Rythin had said something along those lines, if I recall. It made sense; it also definitely explained why my boyfriend had lost control of his anger. "I bet that's when he realized someone from Laughing Coffin was in GGO. Someone who figured out how to kill players for real again. My brother and Nick went back to put an end to that nightmare. To find out his name and stop his PKing once and for all."

I can't say I'm thrilled I'm on the sidelines, even after Rythin realized what was going on, and the others seemed to be the same way. Klein slammed his fist on the bar. "Those damn idiots," he snarled. "Why didn't they say anything?! I could be backing them up right now, all they had to do was ask and I'd have converted over too!"

Silica smiled. "We all would've," she said. "Don't you see? That's why Kirito didn't tell us. If he thought there was any real danger in what he was doing, there's no way he'd get us mixed up in it too. That's just how he is."

"Yeah, you're right," Liz sighed. "And Rythin would never do anything that Kirito didn't want to do if he thought they could handle it," she said with a half-smile. "Those two... Kirito always thinks of others before himself."

I just laughed slightly. "Knowing Kirito, he's probably protecting someone right now." A girl, if Rythin's theory about the pheromones was true, but I didn't bring that up. No sense in adding blood to water full of emotional sharks, after all. "Whoever it is, they're probably pretty pissed off with both of those two idiots right now. Probably more at Rythin, since he's definitely going to be poking at their buttons."

We all turned back to the screen to watch the camera panning over some rocky areas, and my eyes drifted to the player screen - Kirito and Rythin were still alive, so I knew things were going to be okay. "Okay, Chrysheight," Asuna said. "Where're Kirito and Rythin diving from?" She glared. "I know you know so you better tell me know."

Chrysheight stiffened. "T-that's... confidential." Asuna stomped over to him, and he shuddered under the weight of her glare. "Alright, I'll tell you!" Yui flew up to rest on her mother's shoulder, and they sported a matching set of glares. Yui was definitely learning from her mother, that's for sure. "I set up the room myself, so he's safe. Security's rock-solid, and the monitoring's top of the line. I've got a trained professional by his side at all times, and I guarantee that their bodies are in no danger whatsoever!"

"Where are they?!" Asuna all but shouted.

"Toritsu Central Hospital, room 7025," I said. At Chrysheight's amazed stare, I shrugged. "Rythin keeps very few secrets from me."

Asuna blinked. "Wait, is that the same hospital Kirito was in during his rehabilitation?"

"Yes," Chrysheight said. "That's the one."

Asuna nodded. "I'm going over there," she declared. "I want to see them, and you can't do a thing about it!" She looked at me. "Argo, are you coming too?"

I grinned and hopped off of the bar stool, slinking over to where Chrysheight was standing. I pinned him with my smuggest smirk and nodded. "Of course." I was only a few minutes away - Kirito and I had been in the same hospital, actually, and he and I had been in the same rehabilitation group. "See you there."

* * *

It had been a few minutes of me watching Kirito comfort Sinon, gently stroking her hair, when she finally spoke. "Tell me you've got a plan," she said.

Kirito nodded. "Rythin?"

I grinned and cracked my knuckles. Time for a professional to do his job. "Goal - kill the shit out of Death Gun." I shrugged at Kirito's somewhat amused look. "That's the best way to get Sinon safe - once Death Gun's gone, his partner will stand down since you can't be shot anymore, and then he'll probably leave."

"Okay," Sinon said, "but he's skilled. Black Star or no Black Star," - her voice shuddered on the name, and I realized it was the name of the super-happy-funtimes pistol - "you saw. He dodged Hecate's bullet from just a hundred meters away."

"He did know we were there," I pointed out, "and he was prepared."

Sinon shrugged and raised her watch. "And besides, we can't hide in this cave forever, you know?" I raised an eyebrow, and she continued, "By now, the other players probably figured out the three of us are in here. We might as well be sitting ducks." I was about to protest, but she shook her head. "It's just a matter of time before someone tosses a grenade in."

"You're right," Kirito said.

"We've been a team this whole time anyway, right?" Sinon asked. "Might as well finish it together."

I chuckled, admiring her willingness to fight, but Kirito seemed to be surprised. "O...kay, but there's still the risk he shoots you with that gun."

Sinon shifted her weight, and I realized she was more or less on Kirito's lap. "Oh, that thing? It's just an old-school single action sidearm." …Wha? Could I get a translation on the moonspeak, please? "He can fire it all he wants, but I've got you there. Just deflect the bullets with your sword." I smirked. What a change from the earlier Sinon - that one wanted to die, while this one was determined to hold on to life with a stranglehold. I think I like this one more. She's got more spirit.

"Right," Kirito said with a small laugh. "And I won't let a single one of them hit you." Then he frowned. "I still don't feel good about you being out there, though. I mean, Death Gun's dangerous, and you shouldn't get too close to him." I noticed something rather interesting, and I smiled before taking a closer look at Kirito and Sinon. Somehow, his hands had shifted to where they were gently holding her around the waist, and I stifled laughter. This was going to be fantastic.

"Oh, come on," Sinon grumbled, shifting closer to Kirito. I grinned.

He just raised one of the hands that had been resting on her waist. "Hang on," he said. "I'm totally cool with you fighting with us, and I wouldn't have it any other way." He placed his hand on her shoulder, and I bit my lip. "But Sinon, you're a sniper, remember? Isn't your specialty the long-range attack?"

She blinked. "Well, yeah, what about it?"

I gritted my teeth. Here's hoping this doesn't ruin everything. "What he's suggesting is essentially a bait-and-switch," I said quietly. "Death Gun is almost manically focused on Kirito, even more so than he is on you or me. At this point, everything he's going to do is going to be aimed on getting Kirito." Something to be said for fixations. "So what we're going to do is simple. On the next scan, we give him what he wants - Kirito steps outside, the scan picks him up, and oh hey there's our friendly neighborhood madman coming right up to attack him." I waved a hand. "Oh, Death Gun is going to try to keep his distance - like Sinon, his main weapon is a sniper rifle. So rather than risk getting into an up close and personal confrontation with Kirito, the best fighter in all of Aincrad..." Kirito had the grace to look a _little_ embarrassed. "He'll try to pick him off from a distance. When he does, that will give away his location. That's Sinon's cue to pick up the spare and take him out with one well-placed shot."

Sinon looked at Kirito. "Are you cool with playing the decoy?"

Kirito nodded. "Rythin's plans have never failed me yet," he said with a smile. "I trust him."

"Alright," Sinon said with a sigh. "I think you're both nuts, but we'll do it your way then." Then she smirked. "Just be careful out there," she said with a teasing tone in her voice. "Because if he drops you with his first shot, I'm gonna be pissed." She lightly slapped Kirito's side, and I cheered inwardly. Yes!

Kirito laughed uneasily. "I'll keep that in mind." Then he frowned. "Wait, I just remembered. His rifle has a silencer, and you won't see the bullet line on the first shot." It really wouldn't be that hard to dodge the bullet - just wait for the bloodlust and then dodge out of the way of that rather than any bullet.

Sinon, on the other hand, didn't have that particular skill. But she still smiled happily anyway. "Oh, I'll just predict the prediction," she said. "You know, like a certain no-good faker to-"

Suddenly, Kirito leaned forward, getting very close to her and causing her to trail off in surprise. "Um," he whispered. "I think we should stop talking." Sinon tried to say something, but Kirito just looked up at the roof of the ceiling - where a certain disk was hovering in the air, and had been for the past few minutes.

Sinon sighed. "Ugh," she mumbled. "Oh crap, we should have been more attention." I looked over Kirito and Sinon - yep, they were in the perfect situation, Sinon all but curled up on his lap and Kirito seemingly enjoying it.

"What is it?" Kirito asked. "And will it kill us?"

I grinned. "You do realize this thing's being livestreamed, right?" He nodded, and then the blood drained from his face as he realized what I was implying.

Sinon nodded. "It's a livestream camera," she said, sounding remarkably defeated. "Usually, they're only supposed to shadow players on the battlefield. I guess this one's in here now because there aren't many of us left."

"Then, do you..." Kirito gasped, "think it...heard us?"

"Relax, when I talked about it I was quiet. I knew it was here," I said.

"Besides," Sinon added, "for it to pick us we'd have to be shouting at the top of our lungs." If the audio was balanced for a gunfight, it made sense. Still...

I waved at the camera. "Hey, is someone operating this thing? Can you come over here for a second?" I called. After a few seconds, the camera came over and hovered in front of me. "Alright, now... just focus on those two, would ya?" I told it, making the appropriate hand gestures. It turned obligingly, and I grinned. "Perfect. You're the best."

"Rythin I hate you so much," Kirito grumbled.

"Wave to the audience," Sinon said with a giggle. "Unless..." Her smile took on a decidedly teasing tone. "You got someone back at home you don't want seeing this."

Kirito stiffened as he realized exactly the compromising situation he was in, and I laughed quietly so as to not be picked up on the audio. Asuna would be rather angry if she saw this - or rather, when she saw this, because I had no doubt Argo was recording this for an episode of 'Kiriko's Greatest Hits!' when we were done. Comedy gold, right here. "Uh..." Kirito said, scratching at his cheek. "I, um...ah..." Then he turned the tables on Sinon. "Shouldn't you be worried who's watching?" I looked down, and noticed what everyone else watching this would see - what looked like two girls, remarkably intimate. "I mean, since I sorta look like a girl, they might, you know, think you're... y'know."

Sinon blushed slightly and scoffed. "I don't care, they can think what they want!" she snapped. Oh, shit, I wonder if Spiegel's watching this! The dude's probably having a breakdown right now. "The guys in this game are dorks. If they think I'm gay, at least they'll stop hitting on me every five seconds."

"Someone's in denial," I sang.

Sinon made a rude noise at me.

I giggled. "Sinon and Kirito, sittin' in a tree. K-I-S-S-I -"

"Shut up or I swear I will shoot you with Hecate right now and damn the plan."

Kirito made a disgusted sound. "Ugh. How much longer will I have to keep pretending I'm a girl?"

"I don't know but I'm kinda hoping this avatar carries over back into Alfheim." My grin widened. "That would be amazing."

Kirito honestly whimpered. "Please, no."

"Oh, you poor baby," Sinon teased. "You've been fakin' it like a champ since you logged in, another hour or two won't matter." With a small beep the camera disappeared, and both Kirito and Sinon sighed with relief. "Thank god," she sighed.

I basically collapsed on my side, laughing hysterically. "Oh wow your faces when you realized." I laughed so hard spots started dancing in my eyes as I started running low on oxygen. "I hope Argo got that recorded."

Sinon just sighed. "We'd better get ready," she said, determined to ignore what had just happened. "We've got two minutes before the next sat scan. I'll set up here. When you get outside, fire up your terminal and let me know when our boy's close." She walked over and grabbed Hecate, hefting it in her hand. "Rythin, you're with me." So I could cover her in the event that Death Gun doesn't take the bait. Good call.

"Wait, hold on," Kirito said. I looked over in case he was objecting to me accompanying her, but by the look in his eyes I could tell that wasn't the case.

"Why, what's wrong?" Sinon asked. "It's too late to change the plan now."

He shook his head. "No, the plan's fine. Like I said, I've never had one of Rythin's plans fail on me." What can I say? I'm just that good. Though I could probably stand to brush up on some strategy. My tactics were great, and I could probably navigate us through any single battle, but winning a war was still out of my skillset. "It's something else."

I frowned. "What haven't we considered?"

"I was just thinking about Death Gun's real handle, here," he said.

I raised an eyebrow. "It has to be Sterben, doesn't it? I mean, that's the only one Sinon didn't recognize, and he's the only one that's still alive."

Sinon shrugged. "Oh. Well, guess that's him then." She frowned. "Wonder why he gave himself that name, though."

Kirito grinned. "If I get up close and personal, I'll be sure to ask him for you."

"If you get up close and personal, something went terribly, horribly wrong," I pointed out. "Let's hope it doesn't come to that, mm?"

Kirito exhaled, steeling himself for the battle. "Well," he said, striding towards the entrance. "Here goes nothing."

Sinon looked like she was fighting an inner battle for a brief moment, then sighed. "Be careful, okay?" she called out. Kirito gave her a thumbs up without looking back; I grinned at her, and she punched me in the arm. Rubbing at the spot, I chuckled.

"He's pretty good at what he does," I said. "He'll be fine."

"You sure?"

I studied Kirito as he stopped beside the bike and dug out his satellite terminal, then smiled. "Yeah. I'm sure."

* * *

 **Some things – the whole thing with Rythin and the haunted house is a story I'd been thinking about writing as a Sidequest, but eventually decided not to. I think it works better this way, really. He's not really whining when he talks about the past and about who he is, but Rythin's kinda fixated on it. He's obsessed with it, actually. But even though he and Sinon kinda went through similar things (the similarities being 'kids are assholes' and 'searching for strength' mainly) while she's active he's passive; the only reason he spoke to Sinon about it is because it was the fastest way to make his resources function at optimal levels. And because he respects Sinon a little bit. This passivity is actually the reason I follow canon so closely – he's not active enough to change anything. If he wanted to, he probably could change the plot; but he doesn't care enough.**

 **Anyway, we've gotten through Cave Talking Simulator 2015, so things should more or less speed up now. Also, look forward to more Kana. I think she has one or two more appearances in the Phantom Bullet arc, but she's definitely going to be a major player in Mother's Rosario.**

 **It's actually a lot of fun to write both Nick and Kana in a single chapter, just because of how similar they are and yet different at the same time. Nick's narration tends to flow a lot more stream-of-conscious because he's not really keeping himself to what's normally considered sane thought (this explains the prevalence of me breaking grammar rules when it comes to his inner monologues) while Kana's tends to be a little more constrained. Nick's inner monologues also tend to drift and use bizarre words (like 'super-happy-funtimes' for example. I don't care if it makes no sense I got to use 'super-happy-funtimes' in a relatively sane manner and that was one of my life goals) whereas Kana tends to focus on emotion and connections more. It's fun, because they're both highly intelligent and analytical, they just show it differently (If you've picked it up, Nick sees the clues as a puzzle piece and can see the image form, while Kana sees the path between the clues and the links between them). It's also fun to show just how much the two know each other, since they'll occasionally do something that the other expected them to do.**

 **Quick aside of note: I was glancing over some SAO art that happened to show the main characters from the Calibur arc and I was confused because it felt like two people were missing - and then I realized it was missing Nick and Kana and felt really stupid. (It took far longer than it should have. I was like 'wait the only guys are Kirito and Klein? Why does it feel like they're missing one?')**

 **Many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.**

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 **(Canon) Omake: Project Partners**

The boy sighed slightly when the teacher announced that the assignment would be done in partners and that – and this announcement was greeted by cheers from most of the rest of the class – they could select their own partners.

As the class milled around and divvied themselves up, friends going with friends to sit and chat (and maybe, just maybe, start working), he just sat in his chair. He despised group projects, if only because he usually ended up doing the majority of the work personally to guarantee a good grade. Also, when the groups were self-assigned, due to his apathy towards finding a partner he was always left to work with the dregs, the people that nobody else wanted to work with. If someone asked him to work with them, he would; he joined with the first group to actually ask him to work with them. It wasn't as if he had any friends in the class to prefer working with, after all.

Someone tapped his desk, and he glanced over to see who was standing there. It was a girl – someone he had noticed before, sitting in the back of the class as he did. She was usually quiet during the free time, not talking to anyone; she spent her lunches eating quietly and then pulled out a book to read, just as he did. "Can I help you?" he asked calmly, not expecting much. Maybe for her to ask him to move so she could sit with her partner.

"Neither you nor I have partners, and the rest of the class is paired up," she said just as calmly. The boy looked around, counting heads, and realized that she was telling the truth. "So by default that leaves us to work together."

The boy nodded and prepared his materials, getting ready to do the project himself. He was surprised – not pleasantly, not unpleasantly, as he rarely let himself feel anything anymore other than disdain for himself and others – when the girl did the same. He was even further surprised when she proved to be a competent partner, actually contributing to the work instead of sitting back and letting him do the entire job.

Finished early, the girl pulled out a book and started to read. Slightly curious, the boy looked at the title – 'A Wrinkle in Time' – and the girl noticed his interest. "I like the genre," she said almost apologetically. "Plus, the concept is novel. The fifth dimension is always fascinating to me." She closed the book, holding her place with a forefinger, and looked at him. "Out of curiosity, do you know what adding the fourth dimension to a cube is called?"

"What?"

"A tesseract."


	10. Challenges

**Chapter 10: Challenges**

* * *

 **December 14** **th** **, 2025**

We had a minute before the sat scan started, according to Sinon's watch, and I used the time oh-so-productively - which meant that I kicked a pebble around until it skittered off into the darkness and I lost it. "Hey, Kirito?" I called out. He turned to look at me, his terminal in his hand, and I shrugged. "Get a total headcount on the people out there during the scan, would you?"

He nodded and turned back to look across the desert. It was dark and cold, and I was starting to feel a little chilly. Fortunately, all I had to do was pull my muffler up slightly and I was nice and toasty again. "What's the point of the count?" Sinon asked me. "We already know who Death Gun is."

I sighed. "I don't know, but I don't like not having all the data. If there's something we're missing, I want to know everything before we make a move." Yeah, Rythin, now if only you'd taken that stance before trying to fight Death Gun in the first place, you idiot. I thought you prided yourself on being a tactician, and what kind of tactician goes into battle without already knowing that the battle is won? A kind that usually ends up dead, you useless hunk of meat.

Sinon's watch started beeping, and the shrill sound made me jump slightly. I hate those alarms. "Time, Kirito," she called out. I nodded and moved out from our positions inside the cave proper, towards the mouth to where I could barely see the dark figure silhouetted against the night sky standing out under a few pieces of scraggly rock jutting out; it wouldn't be enough for him to hide from the sat scan, which is what we wanted. I watched as he stared up at the sky, eyes narrowed in concentration; after a shining star flew by - which I'm assuming is the satellite - he clicked the button on his terminal and a holographic map appeared.

"Huh," I heard him say. "There's nobody anyone near us." He zoomed out, and I could see a moving white dot a little ways away to our west. He zoomed out the rest of the way, studying the map as a whole. I knew that Death Gun, Sinon, and I wouldn't be on the map, which cut down the total to twenty-seven; subtract Pale Rider, and we should have twenty-six people left in the game. Though at this point there shouldn't be many players left still alive - but they show up on the map anyway, so that should still count towards the total. Kirito and whoever was near us are still alive, so that would be... twenty-four dead people? "Counter says twenty-three are down, and there's only me and Yamikaze still alive on the screen," Kirito reported, and I blinked. That's only twenty-five. He closed the holomap and came back inside. "We're short a player."

I nodded. "Yeah, I noticed that too... Do you think someone else is hiding out?" I would have aimed the question more to Sinon, but she was still in the cave.

He shook his head. "Shouldn't be possible. Sinon said this cave is pretty much the only place to avoid the sat scan if you're not in the river, and I think the two of us are the only ones that have figured that little exploit out."

I grimaced. "So we're missing a player. Maybe..." I glanced at Kirito. "Maybe Death Gun got to them? Somehow?" I relied on him to tell me if I was missing something extremely obvious. It's kinda like having a regular five-year-old on your evil council of evil, and any problems he can spot should be fixed immediately - I could handle a ton of details at once, but I was prone to missing the forest for the trees.

"No," Kirito said, shaking his head. "Death Gun's partner's been camping out at Sinon's house the whole time. He wouldn't have left to go kill someone else in case Sinon got shot by the pistol." The wind picked up, grabbing sand and scattering it everywhere. "There has to be another angle that we're missing." Great, another angle. What was this, geometry class? I always hated that subject.

I sighed. "Whatever. Let's go over the plan another time, make sure everyone knows what they're doing." Kirito joined me and we entered the cave, sand crunching underneath our boots. Sinon, who had been busy disassembling Hecate, cleaning it, and reassembling it, looked up with a jerk, then relaxed when we rounded the corner.

"Well?" she asked, propping Hecate up and leaning against the wall in a ready slouch. "What'd you find?"

"There's six of us left," Kirito said, raising a hand and starting to count on his fingers. "The three of us, Yamikaze..." He sat down on a rocky jutting out from the side with a sigh. "I didn't see Death Gun, though."

I shrugged. "And to make things worse, apparently we're missing another player. The scan didn't pick them up, so they might be hiding somewhere we didn't think of, waiting for things to blow over..." Or up, as the case may be.

Sinon looked out at the desert. "That's it? Just us six?" She looked back at us. "Well, it's been an hour and forty-five minutes already. Seeing as how the last BoB ended in about two hours, this one's right on schedule." She looked back out at the desert, and I realized she was checking for enemies. "Heh," she said with a quiet chuckle, "I'm surprised no one's chucked a grenade in here yet."

I patted my vest. "I can take care of that if you really want."

Kirito whacked my side. "Yeah," he said, "let's just blow ourselves up. That's a great idea. But anyway, maybe we have Death Gun to thank for us not getting attacked. Could be while we're getting attacked, he's whittling down the competition with that rifle of his."

"If you're right," Sinon said absently, "then he's a shoo-in for the max kills award."

My eyes widened. "There's a max kills award? Why didn't anyone tell me that?" All those glorious opportunities for being rewarded for bloodshed, wasted. Then I frowned. "Whatever. I don't think you can use the terminal without getting picked up on it yourself, so I think that means Death Gun doesn't quite know where we are yet."

Sinon nodded. "We should worry about Yamikaze. Kirito's probably the only one who showed up on his terminal, since apparently everyone else is out or hiding. So we better get ready, because he'll be comin' for ya."

I cracked my knuckles. "What's the ranking on this Yamikaze guy, anyway?"

"He any good?" Kirito asked.

Sinon looked at us. "He was runner-up in the last BoB. He's your typical full-on AGI type. Faster than Rythin, probably." Probably, since I split my stats between Agility, Dexterity, and Strength. What can I say, I like having a diverse portfolio. "They call him the Run-And-Gun Demon or something like that, anyway." Oh come on does _everyone_ have a cooler title than mine? Hell, I think Sinon has one and hers is the name of the death god of the underworld!

Kirito sighed, giving her a flat look of confusion. "Ugh... Run-what?"

"Run-and-Gun?" Sinon repeated, a little impatiently. "You run, shoot, run? It's a style of combat?"

I raised a hand. "Sinon, remember that we're both from a different game where the fighting style was 'hit it with the pointy end'. Your fancy words are just confusing us." I glanced at Kirito. "Like my fighting style, I think. Hit them, then get to a different location before they can ping my location. Moving quick to avoid counterattacks." At least, that's what I think she said. I looked back to Sinon. "What's his equipment like? Any tricks like that stupid invisibility cloak of Death Gun's?"

"His main gun's a Calico M900A, an ultra-light submachine gun." Kirito and I just stared at her blankly, and she sighed. "He can shoot you a lot and then run away really fast." We both nodded in comprehension. "Yamikaze couldn't compete with XeXeeD's rare gun and armor in the last tournament, but even though he didn't win, some people say he's the better player." She shuddered slightly. "Apparently, he challenged a bunch of guys spreading rumors about him. He'd stay in one place and all they had to do was shoot him. They surrounded him and fired and when the dust settled, every single one of them had a ton of bullet holes and Yamikaze wasn't touched."

"Woah," Kirito gasped. "He's really that good? Like, the best player on Japan's GGO server good?"

I snorted. "Eh, dodging things isn't that hard." Kirito gave me a dirty look. "Look, just 'cause I've had two years of practice doesn't mean I'm going to underestimate him, okay?" I shrugged. "Anyway, the guys that took him up on their offer are kinda dumb. If they missed him, they'd hit their allies. And if Yamikaze is as fast as you say he is, it's child play to dodge bullets like that." I did that once against like four or five people trying to cut me on a bridge. Those bandits in Titan's Hand didn't even touch me, and I was holding back. "Anyway, the problem with lightweight builds like mine and his is that we're squishy." I grinned. "One good shot from Sinon and down he goes."

"He's earned his position, though," Sinon said. "And he might be our ace in the hole, too. If you're right about Death Gun, then I'm the only one he's ready to kill." Amazing how she was able to say that with a straight face, when before it was the catalyst for her about to have a mental breakdown. Apparently, Vitamin K does wonders for the nerves. Kirito was staring at her in surprise, and she raised an eyebrow. "Y'know, because his partner's waiting at my apartment right now?" She sat back on the little bit of stone, holding Hecate in one hand. "See, I figure that, if that's the case, Yamikaze's not in any real danger of getting killed." She grimaced slightly. "This is gonna sound cold, but... I was thinking he would make the perfect decoy for us."

I tapped my chin thoughtfully. "So Yamikaze's coming after us. When Death Gun shoots him, that reveals his position and allows us to snipe him from far away without getting into any real danger." I nodded and clapped my hands. "Brutal, efficient, manipulative, and cold. I approve, Sinon. You're showing remarkable skill at this."

"Somehow, you saying you approve makes me feel a little ashamed of myself," Sinon muttered.

"You get used to it," Kirito assured her.

"Still..." she murmured, "in a way, we've got two decoys. Him in here, and me IRL."

I raised an eyebrow. "Okay, maybe a little bit too cold and manipulative. Back it up just about a half-step, there, okay?"

"You're pretty brave, Sinon," Kirito said quietly. She blinked and looked at him, and I knew he was smiling.

"Not even," she said, closing her eyes and shaking her head. "I'm trying not to think about it." Kirito laughed sheepishly, and I grinned. Hey, I practice the art of repression, and look how well it's worked out for... me... Hm. We might have a problem. "Trying to avoid what scares me," Sinon said. "Like I always do." Then she straightened up. "Anyway, you think it'll work?"

I glanced at Kirito and ran a few predictions in my head. "As long as Death Gun finds Yamikaze before either of them finds us," I said. "Otherwise we could find ourselves in a nasty pincer attack." Still, something just wasn't sitting right. We were the only ones in the caves, I was pretty sure - Sinon had mentioned how they weren't that great a hiding spot, and I could see the problems for myself, what with no second exit and having only one route of escape if we needed to bolt suddenly. And if nobody else had that stupid invisibility cloak or was hiding under the water, then where was that last player?

"Yeah, it sounds good," Kirito said. Then he frowned. "Although...there's still one thing that bothers me."

"The missing player?" I asked, and he nodded. "So we've got twenty-nine of the thirty accounted for. Twenty-three dead, five alive, Pale Rider. Add them up and we've got twenty-nine, but thirty started this thing."

"We're short one," Kirito muttered.

"No way!" Sinon gasped. "Could Death Gun have killed someone else after he tried for me? How's that even possible? I mean, his number two's supposed to be waiting at my place now!"

I bit my lip. "See, that's where the problem comes in. That's what Kirito and I were basing our prediction on. But now..." I brought my hand up and changed my chewtoy to my thumbnail. "Now I think there's something else at play here." I hate missing variables.

"Between the time Death Gun shot Pale Rider, and when he tried for you," Kirito told Sinon, "only thirty minutes had gone by." He waved a hand in the air. "So based on our theory, Pale Rider's apartment would have to be no more than thirty minutes away from your place. That's kinda convenient, don't you think?"

I narrowed my eyes. "Too convenient. Unless he picked you and Pale Rider specifically because you live near each other, which I doubt. That's just too close for me to buy it."

Sinon leaned forward, a little shaken. "I guess, but what other explanation is there for it?"

I thought about it for a second before the answer hit me like a truck. "Because we limited ourselves to thinking about it too small," I said, staring at the wall in thought. "Death Gun doesn't just have the one partner."

The wind howled outside the cave, and Kirito frowned. "If he is working with more than one person, then it'd be possible to kill one player while still having someone available to kill you." His face paled. "And one for Yamikaze."

Fuck. I leaned my head back and sighed, glaring at the ceiling. "And it was such a good plan, too," I muttered petulantly. "Just use our enemies against each other and wait for them to wipe each other out... Sun Tzu would have been proud." I shook my head. "Regardless, we don't know if Yamikaze's a target. It's possible, of course, since we don't really know why Death Gun is targeting people, or if he's just doing it for shits and giggles." I growled, baring my eyeteeth slightly. "I can't see the pattern for his kills. It's like there's different people choosing the victims." Until the BoB started, we had a pattern - high strength players got killed. The Death Gun shot Pale Rider and screwed that up. It was like - then I slapped my forehead. "Of course it's different people, idiot, Death Gun is multiple people. Regardless, we can't rule Yamikaze out as a target." I could see it happening - the three of us sitting nice and snug in the cave while Yamikaze takes a stun bullet to the face and then a regular bullet from the Black Star before disconnecting. Damn everything, Kirito would be _pissed_ if I let that happen.

Sinon's grip tightened on Hecate, and she leaned forward slightly, staring at the ground. "Oh my god," she whispered. "If you're right and there's more of them out there, how many more are we talking about?"

Let's see, who would Death Gun be working with? Obviously, any of the Laughing Coffin members. "If they're all ex-Laughing Coffin members," I said, then trailed off, glancing at Kirito. I'm ashamed to admit it, but I had forgotten just how many people were there.

"At least ten," he supplied. "Maybe more." He sighed through his nose. "I doubt they're all involved with this, though."

I nodded. "Three can only keep a secret if two are dead, so on and so forth." If we were talking some grand player-killing scheme, more members of Laughing Coffin would mean more than just three, possibly four victims. "We're probably just dealing with three or four Laughing Coffin people, though. In any event, there's only one person in the game with any number of real-world killers out there."

Kirito grimaced. "We can't be sure there's only one real-world killer out there anymore," he said.

"They're crazy!" Sinon gasped, staring at us. "Why else would they do this after getting out of SAO alive?! How could anyone stay a player-killer after... that game?"

"Because it's fun," I said quietly, and her eyes snapped to me. I just looked at her steadily. "It's a thrill to fight and kill, a way to scratch that itch that hadn't been acknowledged until Aincrad. It's the same reason as us, really. Why does Kirito stay a swordsman? Why do you stay a sniper? Why do I act… well, like, um, me?" Fucked if I knew what I acted like. I spread my hands. "Because it's what we're good at." I shrugged. "Some people were in Laughing Coffin because they believed in PoH's dogma and idea of a world for the strong. Some were in it because they liked killing and they were good at it." I snorted in short-lived amusement. "Given the lengths these guys are going to, I'm hazarding a guess that they're the second type."

Sinon's gaze firmed suddenly, and I felt my lips twitch slightly. It was a good expression. She grabbed her sniper rifle and chambered a round. "I called 'em PKers, but I take it back," she growled, and Kirito looked at her. "There are lots of people who PK in this game. I used to run with a squad of PKers myself." Well, there is a difference between a player killer in here and a player killer in Aincrad, Sinon, but yeah, sure. "But at the end of the day, PKers have a code of honor they stick to." I wanted to ask her like what, but figured it wasn't the best time to be getting into a discussion about human nature and the various codes that we went by. "They're not PKers," she spat. "They kill people with poison while they're unconscious. Like a bunch of cowards."

"As a coward who mainly fights with a poisoned knife," I said, raising my hand, "I take offense to that."

"There's no honor in murder," Sinon snarled. "That's chickenshit! Straight up." I blinked, rocking back slightly. Hey, there, Sinon, you seem to be getting a little angry. Then my lips curved into a small grin. Anger is good. Anger would make her hesitate just that little tiny bit less, reduce the natural hesitation normal humans felt when they prepared to kill someone else, even in a game. Sinon was in a fighting rage right now and that meant she'd be quicker on the draw. Hopefully as fast as Death Gun, because I had no doubts that he had lost that hesitation long ago. She turned to us and her eyes were firm, her resolve secure. "And we can't let them get away with it!"

I chuckled. "Excellent." Her will to fight... I can feel it from here. She's like a snarling tiger, or maybe a lion, defending her territory with all the pride of a majestic king of beasts. "They won't get away with it, I can assure you."

"No," Kirito said. "They can't and they won't. We've got a chance to stop these people and we're gonna take it." His eyes were firm, too, and I could hear the steel bared in his voice. "Death Gun's going down on this battlefield. It's over for him and his pals. We'll make 'em all pay." He gritted his teeth. "This is how I make amends for what I did", he murmured so low that I could barely hear, and I was standing right next to him. "For losing it in the chaos of battle." Kirito was always a bit of a berserker when he got going. The Gleam Eyes learned that the hard way, and so did those Laughing Coffin members. "For killing those two players that night, and the other one later on. This is how I'll get closure."

Three notches on his belt, not four. I wonder why he doesn't count the last one.

After all, he killed Kayaba.

"Alright, this won't be easy," I said, cracking my knuckles. "If we're going to do this safely and with minimum risk, you're both going to need to follow my commands in battle." Kirito nodded, and Sinon followed his lead after a bit of hesitation. "Good. Now, Sinon." She shifted slightly, and I pointed at her. "Your main target is Yamikaze. If you take him out, Death Gun can't."

She nodded and looked down at her sniper rifle. "I won't let Death Gun kill him."

Kirito glanced at me, and I read the question in there easily - 'Why not me?' It was for a good reason, Kirito. Yamikaze was tough, and I didn't want to risk Kirito getting caught in a prolonged fight that left both of them open to being ambushed by Death Gun. Since he was acting as decoy, he needed to be able to hold Death Gun's attention, or the killer would strike Yamikaze. I grinned tightly. "Sinon, you can handle that, right?"

"Did you forget what I am?" she asked, hefting the gun. "I'm a sniper." She grinned. "I'll have eyes on you the whole time, so once they move on you I'll know their locations."

"Take out Yamikaze first, then Death Gun," I said. "Minimizes risk of casualties." I looked at Kirito. "You're on decoy duty, Kirito. I need you keeping them occupied as long as possible, so, uh... Don't get shot." He chuckled. "As for me, I'll be hanging back with Sinon and keeping an eye on the battlefield. Kirito, I won't be able to give you any updates on our status, so just keep doing your thing no matter what, okay?"

Kirito nodded. "Okay. We'll go with that." He looked over at the buggy with a smile. "Alright they should be getting pretty close by now. I'm gonna hop on the buggy and head out."

I nodded. "Sinon and I'll head out right after you, get set up as fast as we can." Sinon nodded.

Kirito stood up with a stretch, then faced Sinon, his fist raised. She stood up as well and gave him a quick fist bump. "Good luck out there, partner," she said.

We all shared a quick grin. "Don't get shot or Asuna and or Sugu will kill me," I told Kirito. "Worse, Yui will be disappointed." He laughed and shook his head before heading over to the buggy and kicking the engine into gear. As he peeled out of the cave, I started counting under my breath; at the end of a slow ten count, I gestured to Sinon. "Let's move." We left the cave and looked around. "Where to? You're the sniper, you pick the spot."

She scanned the horizon before pointing at what looked like a wreckage of a plane - or a spaceship maybe, given this place's history - sticking out of the ground a little bit to our east. "There." We approached the structure, and I grimaced. It looked like tetanus waiting to happen, but Sinon was in charge of location. "See that bit sticking out?" she said, pointing over on the right side of the wreckage. "Up there."

I nodded. "I'll go ahead, check it out. Come up slowly, and I'll call if I find someone." Sinon nodded, heading towards the entrance; I just scanned the structure and then cracked my knuckles. Jumping in place a few times, I got my blood racing before taking off for the skeletal structure, sand trailing in my wake. I reached the base of the tower and jumped, reaching for the closest handhold - a piece of rebar was the lowest thing and I grabbed it before swing around and jumping to a protruding steel beam. From there I jumped and hopped and swung my way up the tower, pausing every time I hit a new floor so I could scan it quickly. I didn't really expect to find anyone inside; we had been heading parallel Yamikaze's course, Death Gun probably would prefer the sands so he could get to his quarry quickly, and if that other missing guy had been here, he would have been picked up on the scan. Still, just to be thorough I checked each floor before taking the next bit.

Eventually, I reached Sinon's chosen spot, every place clear; after checking it over, I took a seat on a twisted support beam, panting slightly. My stamina was still kinda shit even in the game, though since it was a game I could ignore it. I didn't really need to breathe, after all, since it was all in my mind. After a few seconds, I heard footsteps and I tensed, my hand drifting towards my stabby knife, but I relaxed after Sinon's head popped into view. I gave her the okay sign and gestured for her to come join me, and she did. Without wasting words, she immediately set to work setting up her sniper's nest; gun down, tripod out, scope on. It was kinda interesting that the scope was a separate attachment while the tripod was part of the gun. You'd think they'd both be necessary.

Her preparations complete, she knelt down and put her eye to her scope - I watched her twist and turn the dial near the end, listening to the clicks. Assuming she was zooming in on Kirito, she should see him walking away from the dune buggy, assuming he was in position. Bleh, assumptions. Then I blinked. Did the Scouting skill or whatever carry over? It probably did, since Sinon had used it earlier. I blinked and focused, staring off into the distance, trying to trace Sinon's probable line of sight based on the position of her gun barrel... Ah. In the distance, I could see two dark blobs, one larger and stationary and one smaller and mobile. Good, looks like Kirito's okay then. Well, better get to guarding.

"Yamikaze's to our west, right?" I asked Sinon, eyes scanning our surroundings. I kept my eyes unfocused; that way, motion would pop out while stationary things would fade out of awareness more. Gave me a better chance of catching the movement in time to save Sinon if it came to that.

"Nn," she murmured. "So if a shot comes from the east, it's probably Death Gun." She swept her gun barrel slightly, adjusting her scope almost constantly. Probably looking for likely Death Gun hiding places. "But he's got that cloak, so when he shoots he'll be invisible." Click, click, click. At least I wasn't using sound to guard her, or I'd be screwed with the racket that scope of hers was making. I say racket, but it's really not that bad. "If he hits Kirito in the heart or head, it's over for him."

I just shrugged - pointlessly, since her eye was glued to the scope. "Eh. Kirito'll be fine." I grinned. "Besides, he cut your bullet in half, right? Granted that was with prior knowledge of exactly where you were aiming and when you'd fire, but that just means he'll be able to dodge Death Gun's shot easily." Right, Kirito? "Anyway, your first priority is Yamikaze. Try to get eyes on him first."

"If I miss, Kirito will get shot... and Death Gun will find me, and probably kill me..." Did she think her life would depend on a single bullet? Feh. Tactics – what I was good at – depended on that single bullet, but not her life.

I snorted. "Thanks for the confidence." I leaned forward, still watching the surroundings while keeping an eye on Sinon from the corner of my eye. "I won't let anyone kill you, Sinon. I need you as bait in the real world to keep Death Gun's partner there as long as possible."

Sinon's finger trembled on the trigger, and I noticed. Since it was, well, the only movement I could see. "Please, Hecate," she whispered, and I had a feeling I wasn't supposed to be able to hear her. "It all depends on this one bullet... like it did that day. I'm weak, and I need your strength. The strength to stand up for myself and move on."

I leaned back and stared at the moon - it wasn't like anyone was going to sneak up on us, I'd notice them coming. Huh. The moon's missing a chunk. Weird. "Y'know, Sinon," I said almost absently, "if you're fighting to find strength, you won't find it looking down the sights of a gun."

She jerked. "Wh-"

"I told you. The strength you have in this game? In any game?" I shrugged. "Illusion. Here it's just numbers, where the person with the most time and money to spend rules the kingdom." A small smirk turned my lips up; hadn't Kirito said something like that once? Maybe his words were what Sinon needed to hear. So time to do some armchair psychoanalysis, because reading people is kinda what I'm good at. "But I don't think you're really trying to get strength, are you. You might have tried to fool yourself into thinking you were, but you're not." She didn't answer, and I knew I hit the button; I usually could. But this time, my goal wasn't to irritate her. "You're trying to accept what happened, to understand. To let go of the chains that are holding you back."

"Gonna tell me I can't find that down the scope, too?"

"No." I snickered. "If you're trying to fix things? Figure out where they went wrong?" I had a sudden flash of insight. "If you're trying to set the world straight, you'll fail if you wait or hesitate. So take aim and..." I spread my hands. "Pull the trigger back." When that happened, she might find the strength she was searching for.

There was silence, and I measured that as part of the impact of what I had just said. Then, incredulously, Sinon said, "Are you... quoting song lyrics at me?"

I kept a straight face with a struggle. "Maybe."

Sinon couldn't help it; she laughed helplessly. "You're something else."

"Thanks. I think."

"No, it was a compliment." She looked at me briefly. "I can see why Kirito trusts you so much." I smiled slightly at that. Then her gaze turned slightly thoughtful, and she went back to looking down the scope. "You know, you said some people came out of SAO stronger, and some came out broken. You said Kirito was stronger, and Death Gun was broken, but you never said which camp you thought you were in."

My smile turned a little sharper. She caught that? Pretty smart, there, Sinon. I think Kirito missed it, or just let it go by out of politeness. "I didn't, did I," I mused. "Strange. How careless of me."

She could tell I wasn't going to answer her question. Instead, she looked through her scope again. "By the way... How is Kirito going to be able to dodge a sniper bullet without knowing where Death Gun is?"

"Didn't Death Gun dodge yours?"

She frowned. "Well, yeah, but that's because he knew where I was. Kirito has no idea where Death Gun will be."

I nodded. "Do you remember why you turned around when Kirito and I snuck up on you? I didn't make a sound, but you turned around when I approached anyway."

"I..." She frowned. "It'll sound stupid, but I think I just knew you were there or something like that."

"You probably sensed the bloodlust." I looked at her. "Take your finger off the trigger for a second, please?" It wasn't like we were going to miss the single instant of being able to shoot Death Gun or anything like that if I had her pause for a second. Besides, I'd rather not have her react without thinking and give away our location. After she complied, I said, "Close your eyes."

"Okay, but I don't get why."

"You will." I gave it a second before closing my own eyes and calling up the viper. I just needed to lessen the restraints just a bit and I could feel the rage rising inside me. I opened my eyes and looked at Sinon; it would be so easy to kill her, really. She's a sniper, but I'm up close. I'm faster, and without her pistol she'd be easy prey. Just get close and draw the knife and put it against her neck and then _pull and_ -

Sinon gasped and whirled to stare at me; by the look in her eyes, I knew she felt it. "What..."

"Bloodlust." With an effort I forced the viper back to rest - annoying, since it felt good to let it out - and sighed. "Kirito and I spent two years in a death game, and our instincts helped us survive. He calls it Hypersense or something, I think of it as internalizing Future Step." Sinon frowned, confused, and I waved it off. "I'll explain later. Anyway, basically, it's like a sixth sense that'll warn us of any danger. My sense might be a little more fine-tuned than his is, but it's also got a thinner trigger, so I'm super twitchy."

"Makes sense," Sinon said, looking back through the scope. "So he's trying to use that to sense where Death Gun is or something?"

I shrugged. "Close. Did you watch how he fights? What I'm expecting him to do is close his eyes and stop moving." I waved a hand over the battlefield. "He'll just listen. Listen for anything moving and ping his targets that way."

"He has sonar?" Sinon asked, disbelief clear in her voice.

"Eh. Closer to radar, maybe." I sighed. "Anything yet?"

"Nothing ye- Woah!" Sinon gasped.

I blinked, shifting gears to the tactician mode. "Talk to me."

"It's Yamikaze." She blinked. "He's fast." She fell silent, gnawing at her lip. Should I tell her to take the shot? I doubt she could guarantee a hit, and that would just be revealing our location if she missed. She could try to take the shot, hit his legs or make him stumble - anyone moving fast enough that I could see the sand cloud behind him from here without my enhanced vision would probably trip and fall if he was forced to dodge a bullet. And a lucky hit would probably kill him, with Hecate's power behind it.

"Sinon, you're the expert here," I murmured. "Your call."

Her finger tightened on the trigger for a second, but she relaxed. "No," she muttered. "Once he has Kirito in firing range, he'll stop to steady his aim. That's my chance, I have to wait until he does."

"Okay. Be patient and keep doing your thing." I leaned back and sighed, looking up at the stars. "He'll be ignoring Yamikaze because he knows you're here to protect him. So Kirito's going to be searching for Death Gun's lust for murder. When he fought Death Gun before, I'm willing to bet that's what let him defend himself at first. Laughing Coffin ambushed them, and I think Kirito managed to feel the bloodlust just in time to defend himself." That's when he fought Death Gun and killed two other members of Laughing Coffin. "So all he has to do is wait patiently, and dodge when he feels the bloodlust." If only Kirito could remember Death Gun's name.

Suddenly, I felt a surge in bloodlust from the east, and I shivered. It wasn't even directed towards me, but I turned to face the source anyway. "Found him," I growled. A second later, there was a loud explosion from another piece of wreckage behind Kirito - to the west - and the top half of the building fell off and crashed to the ground. Sand exploding everywhere from the impact, I winced. "Fuck me that's nasty. That was one bullet!"

Sinon narrowed her eyes and focused. "Yamikaze's taking cover right now," she reported. "He's vulnerable."

Hey, if she wants a spotter… "Fire at will."

She took a deep breath, then exhaled slowly. At the end of it, her finger slammed on the trigger, and Hecate barked. A second later, a faint marker appeared at the very edge of my sight, and I grinned madly as the game helpfully told me that Yamikaze was dead. I whistled; from what I could see, he went flying from the impact. "Target down," Sinon reported in her clipped voice. Tense from nerves, I guess.

"Go for Death Gun."

She worked the slide on her sniper rifle and stood, gasping, "Kirito!" She stood and aimed carefully. I followed her line of sight and used my super zooming vision; it was too far away for me to see clearly, but I followed the little beam of light from Kirito's beam sword as it flashed and spun. There were the occasional sparks when I'm assuming he deflected a bullet, and he was racing forward, gradually growing clearer as he approached. She shifted her sight a little bit, then tensed. "Got you!" she murmured. She placed her finger on the trigger, and I watched carefully.

Then a feeling of intense bloodlust washed over me, and I blanched. "Move!" I shouted, yanking Sinon out of the way the split second after she pulled the trigger. An instant later, a bullet streaked through the air and struck her scope, traveling through it and coming out where her eye would have been had I not yanked her to the side in time. If any one thing had been different – if Sinon hadn't been moving already, sensing the bloodlust, or if Death Gun had fired a second sooner, or if I had pulled her the other way… I didn't want to think about it. "Be careful," I gasped. "You okay?"

Sinon nodded shakily as she ejected the spent shell. "My scope's shot to hell, but I'm fine. I can still fire Hecate if I need to."

"Is there a way we can see if you got Death Gun?"

She studied the landscape, then shook her head. "I think I got his gun, though. It's far away and I can barely see it, but I don't think Death Gun can fight anymore."

"Excellent," I murmured, studying the distance and watching as Kirito approached Death Gun; he was close enough that I could see them clearly with my enhanced vision. "Kirito, black queen takes black king. Checkmate by red king." I'm admittedly bad at chess. Kirito lunged forward in an imitation of the Vorpal Strike Sword Skill, and I frowned. Why was Death Gun just standing there, holding a piece of his shattered sniper rifle? Kirito attacked, and then Death Gun just... _blurred_. The cloaked figure shifted to the side faster than Kirito could attack and - oh what the fuck is this fresh bullshit how did he pull a weapon out of his sniper rifle what the fuck. Death Gun slammed the point of whatever he was using into Kirito's shoulder, and I swore loudly.

"Kirito!" Sinon gasped, stiffening.

"I'm gonna go get him some backup," I told Sinon, taking off my vest to reveal the sleeveless black shirt I wore under it. "Watch my vest, I'll want it back." With a grin and a small wave, I hopped off the edge of the building. Sinon shouted something, but with the wind rushing through my ears I couldn't hear her very well. As I fell, I realized three things - one, I didn't have my wings, two, there was a camera drone falling alongside me and I waved at it, and three, fuck me this was a stupid decision. I curled into a ball and prepared for the moment of impact; the instant before I hit the ground I shot my legs out explosively, slamming my boots against the side of the wreckage and launching myself forward. I hit the ground running and launched myself towards the battle raging in the distance, racing as fast as I could move. Fuck, why didn't I see this coming?! I knew Death Gun was part of Laughing Coffin, I knew he was used to swords, I knew Kirito and I managed to get our preferred weapons, why didn't I think he'd have his?! Stupid! Fucking! Idiot!

* * *

I arrived at the hospital to find Asuna waiting nervously in the lobby for me to arrive. She was wearing a cute red coat and carrying her purse, but she was shifting back and forth not really paying attention to the looks of admiration she was getting from most of the males over the age of thirteen and under twenty. Eh, she was probably used to them. "Sorry I'm late," I said quietly, tapping her on her shoulder. "The bus was running slow."

"I'm just glad you made it," Asuna said softly. "Yui? What room was it again?"

"Room 7025," her phone reported, and I looked over her shoulder to see Yui's image. She was using the mobile interface Nick made her, looks like. I had it installed on my phone too, and I could have logged in to have a view in the world as well, but it felt like this should be a more private moment between Asuna and Yui.

"I've got my visitor's pass, we're good," I said. "Let's go." Fortunately, the elevator was already on the first floor, so we didn't have to wait. If we did, Asuna might have had a nervous breakdown. As it was, she just stared as the number on the elevator slowly started climbing.

"Don't worry, Mommy," Yui said from the phone Asuna was carrying. So convenient that Nick made that little app. "No matter how strong his enemy is, Daddy won't lose." Thanks for the vote of confidence in Kazuto, Yui, but he is going against Laughing Coffin. Even back in Aincrad people were afraid to go against them on equal footing. That's why the raid was supposed to be an ambush, I think. What with it being ruined like that, I'm amazed that they managed to capture as many as they did. "He's Daddy, after all!" How sweet.

Asuna smiled gratefully and nodded. "Yeah, you're right." The elevator came to a halt and Asuna immediately started running. "Yui, where's his room?" I heard her ask as she raced down the hall.

"Ugh," I muttered. "Running." Still, I took off after her.

I was able to catch up in time to hear Yui finish up giving the directions. "Turn left here, Mommy," she said. "And his room is eight meters down."

We found the room and Asuna slammed the door open. "Kirigaya?" a worried voice asked, and I leaned in around Asuna to see a kinda attractive nurse leaning over Kazuto's bed before glancing over at Nick's bed. "Weyr?"

My eyes were immediately glued to Nick's unconscious body; he was gritting his teeth, and I saw sweat beading on the little bit of torso that wasn't covered by the thin blanket. Asuna, of course, was looking at Kazuto - who was in just as bad a shape, if not worse. "Kirito!" Asuna all but screamed, immediately flying to his side. I was able to keep my cool just a little bit, if only because Nick wasn't panting heavily like Kazuto was. Still, I wouldn't have called the way the door slammed shut behind me 'gentle' by any interpretation of the term.

"Miss Yuuki, right?" the nurse asked. "And you must be Miss, er..." She gave me a sheepish grin that quickly disappeared when she glanced at Nick. "I'm so sorry."

"It's fine," I said, waving away her apology. I didn't really care that she'd forgotten my last name in the heat of the moment. "Are they okay?" That was the important part, especially since they were probably fighting Death Gun at the moment.

"Is something wrong with Ki- I mean, Kazuto?" Asuna asked frantically.

"No, they're both okay," she hurried to reassure us. I immediately relaxed slightly, while Asuna didn't release her death grip on Kazuto's blanket. So long as Nick would be okay, I could face the world. "I know it looks bad, but neither of them are in any danger. Kirigaya's heart rate spiked, is all, followed by Weyr's a few seconds later."

"His heart rate," Asuna whispered, before looking at her boyfriend's medical screen. I glanced at Nick's, but I wasn't really sure how to read it at all. Some of the numbers made no sense, while the graphs were bizarre and angular. "Why?" she asked. "What's going on?"

"Mommy!" Yui said suddenly. "Look to your right, at the monitor on the wall." Asuna and I both turned to look at the large screen on the wall. "I'm patching the live footage from the MMO stream." I blinked, slightly nonplussed by Yui's casual reveal that she could do that. When did she even get access to the hospital's Wi-Fi? For that matter, how did she pull up the building plans and figure out where Kazuto and Nick's room was? Whatever, I need to think about that later.

The screen turned on and we saw the welcome screen from Zaskar; Gun Gale Online, Bullet of Bullets 3. Now with one hundred percent more crazed murderers, though they weren't really advertising that part. Then the screen dissolved to show a girl in black facing off against a man in a ragged cloak in a desert at night. Both were carrying blades; the girl's was a purple lightsaber - of course, I rolled my eyes, because all girls have to have girly colors. What's wrong with brown, anyway? I look good in brown - and the man had something made of a strange metal. The camera briefly shifted to show a man racing through the desert - I recognized Nick just before the camera cut back to the stand-off. It zoomed in on the girl to reveal that she was clutching her shoulder, holding a bright red wound. Then I looked at the nametag and snorted with amusement. "That's _Kirito_?" I asked incredulously. "But... he looks like a girl!" Suddenly, I'm very glad I'm recording this. What should I title the video? Oh, I know, I'll call it 'Kiriko's Greatest Hits'.

"That's Kirigaya's avatar?" the nurse asked, looking at the boy in question strangely. "From the game he's diving into now?"

…Shit, Kirito's kinda hot looking like that.

Then Asuna twitched. "He's in battle," she murmured. "I think that's why his heart is racing so much."

"And Nick's probably running to back him up," I mused. "Explains the spike a few seconds later." Then I realized just what kind of weapon the cloaked man was holding, and I frowned. An estoc? The clues linked together in my mind, and I gasped. "An estoc. That's Death Gun, the person Kirito's fighting against!" There was someone in Laughing Coffin, a high-ranking member, who'd been famous - or infamous, as the case may be - for using that particular kind of blade. I gritted my teeth and pressed the heels of my palm to my forehead, trying to force the information out of my head. "What was his name? Think!" The red eyes of his gas mask felt like they were trying to tell me something, but I just couldn't string together the path that would lead me to the answer. I glanced at his name in GGO, in case he had been stupid enough to use the same handle, but I wasn't rewarded. 'Sterben' wasn't familiar at all.

"St-Sterben?" Asuna stumbled over the strange word. "Isn't it supposed to be Steven?"

"It's not," the nurse said.

"She's right," Yui chimed in, looking serious, and Asuna jerked in surprise.

I glanced at the nurse's face, and she looked solemn. "It's a German word. I know it. It's a medical term we use." A small chill ran down my spine, and I realized it was my sixth sense that told me I had just heard some important information. "It's pronounced 'sh-terben'." Okay, that's neat and all, but why did I have that tingle?

" _Ster-ben_?" Asuna repeated slowly, pronouncing it correctly.

"It means... to die," the nurse admitted. "In hospitals, we use that word when a patient's passed away." Why would they... Ah. I guess it makes sense, if you're trying to avoid worrying other patients. So Death Gun named himself after a German word that means death? Rather morbid of him.

Wait. "Is it only used in hospitals? Around here, that is?" I asked, and the nurse nodded slowly, her eyes still glued to the screen. I sighed slowly. "So Death Gun has connections to the medical field," I mused. "The method of killing is probably based around that, probably with a drug of some sort, one that causes heart failure and doesn't show up on an autopsy." My lip curled. "Arrogant murderer." Did he really think people wouldn't put two and two together?

"Kirito," Asuna whispered, staring at the panting boy. I moved over to the seat beside Nick's bed and sat down, gently tracing the small bit of his scar that was visible with my fingertips. Oh, Nick… I loved him so much, and while I get why he didn't want me involved in this, it was frustrating that he didn't ask for my help. I didn't want to be on the sidelines anymore; I wanted to be able to stand with him and fight alongside him. He treated me like I was made out of spun glass, and I understood why he did that - he was terrified I'd leave him if he did something wrong or if I was in trouble. And that was part of who he was, and I knew that I had to accept that, and I had. Still, I wanted him to see me as more than just 'my girlfriend, the woman I love'; I wanted him to see me as an equal partner, someone who can take the same risks and share the same burdens.

I had to be strong for Nick.

* * *

I had to be strong. For Argo, for Kirito, for Asuna and Leafa and all the others back in Alfheim. For everyone that I cared about, I needed to have the power to stop Death Gun.

Now if only I could make it to the fucker, I could see if I had that strength and power.

As I raced up and down the dunes, through the plains, my eyes riveted on that one slice of glowing purple in the distance, I berated myself constantly. Why hadn't I done my homework before logging in? Why had I just blindly assumed I would be able to handle anything that appeared in front of me? Because I was a stubborn, arrogant fool who can't learn his godsdamned lesson the first time it gets pounded through my thick skull, that's why. Fuck! Now because of my arrogance, Kirito was facing against an opponent that was extremely deadly. I should have known it was possible to make a blade in this game, hell, I fucking _owned_ one! So why didn't I even remotely consider the possibility that Death Gun, someone that had been trapped in Aincrad just like me and Kirito, would find a way to get a sword?

Fuck!

The dunes shifted under my feet, and I paused to regain my sense of direction, trying to get my temper under control at the same time. Okay, so Death Gun pulled a sword out. That's - while incredibly, _incredibly_ bad - something I can use to figure out who he was in Laughing Coffin. Kirito had his longsword, I had my knife. We all had our chosen weapons, and Death Gun would be no different. If I identified his weapon, I identified his soul - so to speak, because fucked if I knew if those things existed - and that would lead me to his name. His name would give me all I needed, and from there we could find him in the real world. If I identified his weapon, we had him.

Okay, now that I can think without swearing at myself every third word, let's try to salvage this. I started running towards the fight, my mind racing as fast as my legs. This is actually really bad, now that I'm thinking about it. Kirito's one of the best fighters I know, but he's not as good as he was back in Aincrad. Without fighting for his life every day, he spent all of his free time with Asuna, simply enjoying time with the woman he loves. Not a bad thing, but it means his skills have gotten rusty. I noticed that, lately; during our spars, I was getting closer and closer to beating him – the win-loss split was just under 50-50, now. I just thought it was me getting better. But it was also him getting worse. Death Gun, though... Death Gun's an insane murderer. He wouldn't be spending time with people he cared about because he'd rather kill than care. So he'd be spending most of his time fighting and training and getting stronger. And we can't forget that if Death Gun made his weapon, it's probably a part of him, while Kirito's using a sword that's too light that he's used for only one other day. My eyes narrowed against the wind and in thought. Kirito and Death Gun fought once before, didn't they? And Kirito won. But who'd win now?

Let's hope when we found out Kirito was standing.

Knowing Death Gun, he'd be willing to banter with Kirito for a bit. Grandstanding asshole that he was, he had the attention of the entire audience - when the camera wasn't on me, I noted with a glance at the recording disk keeping pace with - and so he'd be milking it for all he was worth. Insulting Kirito, insulting his weapon, trying to break my friend by talking. Kirito was hopefully smart enough to know if he was outclassed, to try to buy me time to arrive; he'd keep Death Gun talking, fire back witty - well, relatively - retorts that would only serve to make Death Gun speak without thinking. All I had to do was make it in time and everything would solve itself.

I crested a dune and halted, sand spraying at my feet; I was on top of the fight. They both knew I was there, they just didn't bother looking at me. "Bet you still think you're a member of Laughing Coffin," Kirito shouted, holding his shoulder. Gah, that attack must have taken more out of him than I thought.

Death Gun looked at his right forearm, where the bandages hid his Laughing Coffin tattoo, and then back at Kirito. Damn that mask of his, I can't read it! "You remember," he drawled. "I'm impressed." Well, at least the voice modification was mostly gone. Now it was just boosting his voice so that he could pretend to talk calmly while shouting. "Then I guess you understand the difference between you... and me. _I'm_ a genuine red player." Pissant. "While you are not." He tilted his head and steam hissed from his mask, quickly blowing away in the wind. "But Rythin, you surprised me."

So he's addressing me, now is he? "And why's that?" I called from the high ground, watching them with folded arms. I was willing to stay out of the fight as long as Kirito kept himself together. "Because you didn't expect me to be this devilishly handsome? To be so ripped?"

"No," Death Gun intoned, sounding slightly amused. "Kirito killed only because he was scared. Scared and desperate to survive. And instead of facing it, I bet he tried to forget it even happened. Just like a coward." He turned to me. "But you, Rythin. I can tell, you've killed and you don't care in the slightest. The reek of spilled blood comes from your hands. Stained crimson with the blood of your targets." Oh you smooth talker you. Stare into the abyss and the abyss stares into you – so what happens when you take a flying leap _into_ the abyss? "You're just like me, a red player."

"I might be a coward," Kirito snarled, "but I'll still stop you from killing again."

"Don't let him rile you, Kirito," I called. I need to intervene. "You need to focus, and getting angry won't help that." I smirked slightly. "Oh, and, ah, Death Gun? Or Sterben, or whatever your name was in Aincrad?" His head tilted slightly, and I let my smirk widen just a bit. "There's a very important difference between us that you haven't seemed to notice."

"Oh? And what might that be?"

My smirk softened slightly, but my eyes were rock hard. "I have friends that I care about, that care about me in return." Their faces flashed through my mind; Keiko, Rika, ...Klein. Sugu, Kazuto, Asuna. And Kana, my beautiful Kana. "Because of them, I'll never be a red player. If I ever start to stray down that path, I trust that they'll be there to stop me." I unsheathed my knife and pointed it at Death Gun. "You're just murderous scum that's clinging to the past. And you're about to find out that the present is a very painful place for you."

I stepped down the dune, keeping my knife and my eyes locked on Death Gun. "See, we figured out how you killed XeXeeD and the others. It has nothing to do with any special powers of yours, or that handgun, right? Of course not," I drawled, condescension thick in my voice. "The AmuSphere is perfectly safe. But the homes aren't, are they? So all you have to do is have one of your buddies break into the house of the target, using the information you picked up from the terminals at the Governor's Office using your invisibility cloak, and then time the shot to coincide with the injection." I stopped between Kirito and Death Gun. "You shoot, the drug stops the heart, and to everyone watching it looks like you killed them with a single bullet. But that bullet's just a phantom." I smiled cruelly. "You got noticed, just like you wanted. You killed the people, you got the attention. Only problem with your plan, the Ministry of Internal Affairs noticed too. And they sent us."

Death Gun looked at me, his cloak flapping in the wind. "And how will that stop me?" Good, keep asking questions. Let me build up my rage, let Kirito calm down.

I reached up and removed my muffler, letting it fly free into the wind. I didn't need anything to slow me down or give Death Gun an opening to kill me. Without my vest I was largely defenseless, but my best defense always had been and still was my mobility. "There's data on every player from SAO. Name, address, records of in-game locations and times and dates... Everything that's needed to prove you're a sadistic creep and get you locked away for a very long time." My eyes narrowed. "All that's needed is your handle."

"It's all over for you," Kirito shouted, stepping to the side slightly so that he could watch Death Gun. "So log out, and turn yourself in!"

"You think you have it all figured out," Death Gun said. "But ya don't. And you can't stop me. You wanna know why? Because I _know_ you'll never remember what my handle was."

"That so?" I asked idly. "What's the cause of the confidence?"

Death Gun laughed, the red eyes in his mask flashing. Red eyes... Study the weapon while he's talking. Listen to his words but don't let them touch your center, Rythin. "Rythin, you would never know it, and Kirito doesn't even remember the reason he forgot it in the first place. Think back, Kirito. After that battle between your group and mine, I tried to tell you my name. But you said, 'There's no point in giving me your name. I don't want to know it. As far as I'm concerned, I'll never see you again'. That was quite the mistake, wasn't it?" I heard Kirito draw in a shuddering breath. "You can't remember my handle, and you never will. I never gave it to you! And now I'm going to cut you down. I'll leave you lying here helplessly as I kill the girl, and you can't stop me!"

He flicked his sword out and blurred again. But I was ready this time; before he could lunge past me and strike at Kirito, I had moved faster than he had and met his strike with a sweeping slash of my knife. He blurred again, trying to stab at me when my guard was high, but my slash continued and I parried his thrust towards my gut. Kirito flinched, both of us seemingly appearing in front of him like we had, and he stepped back. "Kirito, take a bit to recover your nerve, okay?" I said, staring Death Gun in the eyes. An estoc - that's what his weapon was called. "I can hold him off for a bit. After all..."

My eyes grew wild and I felt my lips curl to a grin. The rage of the viper thrummed through my veins, leashed to my blade. "We both have weapons made from the armor plating of a space battleship. So, Death Gun!" I howled, my voice a harsh, deep, growl. "Let's _dance!_ "

* * *

 **Rythin versus Death Gun! FIGHT!**

 **So, basically, Kirito's been goofing off, enjoying his time with Asuna. Death Gun's been practicing constantly so that he could still be a red player. And Rythin's been practicing karate as a means of controlling his anger – as well as developing as a ruthless fighter. Back in SAO, he wasn't so ruthless, but now he's on par with Death Gun in terms of lack of empathy. But he's drawing the line in the sand at being called a red player; he might be a massive murder-loving jerk, but he's not a** _ **killer**_ **. …Yet.**

 **Also, some people had noted that Nick was (gasp of shock) NICE to Silica and the others in the first chapter. That's because, even though he hadn't admitted it to himself, he thought of the others as friends. People that he would miss if they left his life. And so he'd subconsciously turned down the snark (except when speaking to Liz because that's how they communicate) and was being nice to them. It was mentioned briefly in a few chapters, but always as a throwaway line.**

 **...On an unrelated note, I've been keeping up with the SAO Material Editions as they've been translated, and... how many times have Kirito and Asuna had (or are implied to have had, rather - they're technically minors so let's keep this clean) sex now? In under a day. I mean c'mon. That's not what you people _do_ , right? It's not just... over and over again like that, right? Gods, it's so bizarre every time I see something in fiction like that. It's like I'm reading it and think 'Aw, they just had a touching romantic moment - oh, wait, now that's literal, he's gently touching her cheek and she's thinking about how hot she feels and - and... oh, oh god they're like _rabbits_ come on now! ...O-on the _rocking chair?!_ What is wrong with you people!'**

 **Many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.**


	11. Phantom Bullet

**Chapter 11: Phantom Bullet**

* * *

 **December 14** **th** **, 2025**

"So, Death Gun!" I howled. "Let's _dance_!"

My knife flashed in my hands as I dropped into a careful waiting stance, and my eyes were narrowed as I watched Death Gun. I could feel his urge to kill radiating from him, and I matched the aura of death with one of my own, summoning up all the hate and rage and hatred and need to murder have to kill he must DIE. I panted slightly, my breath hissing out, and Death Gun shifted. I felt like I could feel him laughing at me, and I bared my teeth. Laugh at me, would he? Let's see him laugh when my knife is _buried to the hilt_ in his _skull_. "Well, Rythin," Death Gun intoned, slicing the air with his estoc and letting his cloak flare in the wind. "You continue to surprise me. With that bloodlust, how you never joined Laughing Coffin is beyond me."

"I don't play well with others," I growled, digging my boots into the sand beneath me. "Besides, I only learned better after we all woke up."

"A shame," Death Gun sighed. "With you, it would be so _easy_ to kill whoever we want."

"Bite me. Or don't, I don't want rabies."

The posturing done with, we moved, closing in each other at the same time. I wasn't dancing gracefully this time; this was flat-out trying to kill the bastard, no wasted moves or motions. With a grunt, Death Gun thrust forward with his sword, the tip seeking my unprotected throat, but I was already moving to avoid the blow. I parried the blow with the flat of my knife, shoving it off to the side away from me while closing in on him at the same time. With a shout, I thrust my fist toward his gut, slamming a punch there – only to be forced to jump back when I heard a metallic clang and he drew back his estoc again, this time going for my eyes. Landing with a spray of sand, I hissed in pain and shook my hand. Punching metal hurts when I don't have my diamond gloves to take half of the blow.

Death Gun didn't give me a chance to recover; he was already dashing forward, estoc licking out and trying to find holes in my guard, and despite my years of experience with Future Step I just couldn't dodge all of the attacks. I wasn't good enough. Still, my bloodlust matched his, the two thirsts for blood warring as we struck out at each other, and I could read that to get maybe a quarter of a second of warning – but that just wasn't enough. I couldn't get through his guard; it was like fighting Asuna, only an Asuna that genuinely wanted to kill me. So let's _up the ante!_

I dashed forward, the viper in me lashing out and tracing the path I needed to strike at. I followed it with a hiss of exhaled breath, tightening my muscles to attack as fast and strong as possible; my dagger plunged toward his arm. Death Gun flicked his estoc up and knocked my blade away with a spray of sparks, and I felt his bloodlust aim toward my stomach like the fangs of a spider trying to pierce me. I thrust my knee up, interrupting the path, and it collided with his estoc, forcing it to slide past my body. I kicked out, the viper striking towards his stomach, but he was already shifting to the side almost faster than I could catch it. The only warning I had was when his fangs struck at my neck from the side, and I dropped, catching myself on my hands and kicking up with my legs. The blade of his estoc blew past where my neck had been and I pushed up, soaring towards him with my feet outstretched, but it was fruitless and I hit only air. I landed and twisted, feeling where his fangs would sink into my body and moving to avoid the repeated thrusts.

Disengaging from him and jumping back, I took a deep breath. Crap... We were reading each other too well. Fighting with the bloodlust active like that, he could sense where I'd strike next and I him. Like that, we'd never get anywhere; I decided to experiment a bit and focused, directing the viper to attack at the left foot. Just like that, Death Gun shifted to the right, and I grinned slightly, only to tense when his fangs struck toward my right arm. I narrowed my eyes and shifted, turning my shoulders slightly to pull my arm out of the path of the spider's fangs. Then I chuckled; looks like he was doing the same thing as me. This won't get us anywhere; as we circled each other, I used my viper and he used his spider. Neither of us could get a solid blow on the other without sacrificing more than we were ready to risk, and so we didn't attack, just continuing to move around each other. Oh, there were the occasional probes, Death Gun lunging toward me with his estoc licking towards my eyes and me cutting out with my dagger or trying to get behind him; we were constantly engaging and breaking away, but it would only _look_ like we were fighting. I lunged to the left, trying to direct the viper to the right, but Death Gun must have expected that because instead of circling behind him I found myself being forced to roll forward or else end up with a punctured lung. Damn this sand... I can't get a good footing.

Tired of this pointless clashing, I snarled and poured more hatred into my body, trying to give myself any edge I had over Death Gun, and he stumbled slightly; I pounced on the opportunity, my knife splitting the air with the shriek of tortured metal as it went directly for his throat. Death Gun leaned to the side, dodging the main blow, but that was okay – striking his shoulder worked just as well. I didn't get away scot-free, being forced to take a thrust straight through the ribs, but when he pulled back for another blow I slammed myself toward him. He drew back his blade, trying to get it in position in time, but I lashed out with my blade and knocked his estoc out of alignment before twisting and slamming the point of my steel-toed boots into the side of his head. He cartwheeled away, rolling with the blow, so I didn't get to do as much damage as I'd have liked, but it was still the first solid hit I'd landed on him. I'd sacrificed half of my own health to get it, but I'd damaged him – he'd have to be shaken now. That was my entire goal - I'd die, but I'd be able to weaken him if not outright kill the fucker.

Death Gun came upright and I slammed my foot into the ground on the landing to push forward, intending to carve open his throat from ear to ear; the second I got close, though, his free hand flashed up and cast something toward me. I had a heartbeat to realize he'd just thrown sand at me before it was in my eyes and I leaped back, hissing at the stinging pain in my eyes. I'd been blinded, and that was bad; even through the darkness, however, I could feel the bloodlust and jumped back, hearing sand crunch where I'd been a second ago. There was a hissing sound that wasn't from me – his gas mask? "I'm impressed, Rythin," Death Gun said, and he sounded lower. That crunch and surge of killing intent was probably him trying to run me through.

"Rotten bastard," I growled as I pawed at my eyes, trying to get the grit out of them. "Blinding me with sand you grabbed from your dodge?"

"Ah, so you did see that."

"Extrapolation, actually," I murmured, blinking. My eyes were still watering and my vision was blurry, but I could fight. "You didn't have sand in your hand before I kicked you and you did after – so it had to have been when your hand was on the ground." I flicked my knife blade to the side. "Cheating asshole... I'm going to kill you for that."

"It's not cheating," Death Gun told me, sounding amused, "it's using my resources creatively."

I snarled something incoherent. _I'm_ the dirty fighter here, bastard, not you! I'll be damned if I let you beat me through an obvious trick like that! I gathered myself, preparing to lunge, until suddenly I felt a hand on my shoulder; I looked over to see Kirito standing there, a determined look on his face. "Rythin," he said, staring at Death Gun. "Let me handle this."

I watched him for a second, then raised an eyebrow. "You sure?"

He looked at me and nodded, his face solemn. "I have to be the one to do this. I have to face him." Ah. Death Gun is Kirito's demon, the thing he has to beat to accept how he killed those three players. And if I killed Death Gun, he'd never be able to accept that part of him and move on. Shame, really. But Kirito was my friend, and I'd do anything for him. "Please." Even without him looking like a female that probably has every single one of our friends laughing hysterically. And or cooing over how cute he is. Maybe both. Who knows!

He'd said it in the cave, to Sinon mostly, but he'd said it all the same - that he shouldn't forget what it means to kill, the significance of taking a life, and that when he did accept those burdens he'd be able to find closure - and right now he was asking me to let him take on the past, to be able to accept what he did and fight back. Faced with a reason like that, well... How could I say no?

"...Of course, Kirito," I nodded, straightening up. I sheathed my knife and with it forced the viper down to rest again. Taking a deep breath, I cracked my neck and grinned. "Right, then, have some fun. I leave this case in your hands, world-weary vet." Kirito smiled slightly and swung his beam saber. "By the way, Death Gun, thanks for being so understanding about this." The cloaked man was just standing there, probably a little bemused. "I'll be standing back, for now. I won't get involved in a one-on-one duel."

"How noble," Death Gun sneered.

"Trust me, I'm going to kick your face in regardless," I said, smiling widely. "But Kirito's got hunting rights, since he's fought you before." Stepping back to the top of a dune, I sat down and crossed my legs, getting comfortable. As I settled my weight, I spread my arms widely. "Kirito?"

"Mm?"

The problem with fighting one against two wasn't that they'd gang up on you. The problem was exactly what had just happened – they'd fight separately until one gets tired, and then the other tags in, perfectly fresh. Attrition will wear down anyone and force them to make mistakes.

Mistakes that would allow us to kill Death Gun. My smile dropped instantly as I clenched my fists. "Destroy him."

Kirito nodded and swung his sword, preparing to attack Death Gun. Death Gun just laughed madly and blurred forward, dropping under Kirito's thrust and retaliating with several thrusts of his own. I watched impassively as Kirito was struck on the shoulders and arms and legs, red lines opening up along his avatar and marking him with damage. I just watched with narrowed eyes, thinking. It was cold, but Kirito asked me to do this. Though, if there was a chance of Death Gun getting away, I would have said no. But I trusted Kirito; and even if he lost, I was still here, ready and willing to murder Death Gun.

It was possible... No, at this point it was still probable that Kirito would lose. Despite fighting me first Death Gun was just too fast, too accurate with his thrusts. Laughing madly the whole time, Death Gun's estoc flashed out over and over again, striking Kirito and forcing my friend on the defensive; Kirito backflipped away to gain distance and brought his sword up in a guarding position. Death Gun didn't even bother with the speed now, he just walked forward calmly, thrusting at Kirito's vital points. Still, Kirito was good enough to be able to deflect the attacks with a grunt, sparks flying every time the estoc and the beam sword collided. Occasionally Kirito would dodge the attack, shifting to the side and leaning one way or another. Still, Death Gun was clearly toying with him. As he laughed, his estoc slipped through Kirito's guard and opened up more wounds, and I gritted my teeth. But I wouldn't interfere; I'd given Kirito my word that I wouldn't.

Death Gun was tough, no two ways around that. I leaned forward as Kirito kept backing away, trying to get distance between himself and Death Gun. Still, Death Gun kept pressing the attack, forcing Kirito to block and parry and never have time to attack. Kirito just needs to slow him down, that's all. I looked over at the tower where Sinon had been sniping from, and I grimaced; her scope was damaged, so she couldn't snipe. The only thing she could do would be to come down to the battlefield personally, and that was just a bad idea. I watched Death Gun execute another smooth combo, flowing from a thrust to a roundhouse kick to a slash with practiced ease, and I clenched my fists - he was just too strong for Kirito to take on alone, not without figuring out some way to slow him down. But I couldn't _do_ anything, I was stuck on the sidelines, why am I always forced to _watch_ as my friend fights and dies? Why?! First Kayaba, now Death Gun, why am I always so _usele_ -

I froze, and stared at my left hand in amazement. Despite the chill wind blowing through the desert, it felt... warm. Like someone was holding my hand, someone invisible and intangible but warm. ...The nurse? No, she was a professional, and she wouldn't touch my body without asking first, or it being strictly medically necessary. So who was holding my hand? A face floated in my mind's eye, and I relaxed. "Argo..." I breathed. My love was in the room, sitting beside me, sharing her warmth with me. "Thank you." I placed my right hand over my left and leaned forward, studying Death Gun's appearance and movements. Sooner or later, something would appear, and that would give me the chance to pull on the loose thread that was his estoc. And that thread would lead me to his identity. Frowning, I set to work planning and scheming. I needed Sinon here, that's for certain. She was the only one that could interfere at this point, since I'd given my word and everyone else was dead. But how to keep her safe from Death Gun? I couldn't guarantee I'd be able to take the bullets for her, and the bullets traveled faster than I could kill her with my knife. So how could I keep her from getting shot?

I shifted, and smiled. I'd forgotten about that, somehow. Yes, that would work perfectly.

* * *

We all watched anxiously as Kirito fought desperately against Death Gun; his diagonal slash was aborted before it even began, and Death Gun struck quickly, like a viper. Thrust, thrust, kick, thrust... Kirito was just barely keeping up, and I knew he was taking damage. My hand tightened on Nick's motionless hand, and I took solace in just being able to hold his hand, even if he didn't respond. He was strong, despite what he claimed. I saw the dark sides of him, and I knew how much he was fighting and struggling against daily; nobody who could still function in society while dealing with that much stress and pressure _could_ be weak.

A monitor started beeping, and we all turned to stare; Kazuto's heart rate had spiked over 160, and it was still rising. I glanced at Kazuto's body, and my lips pressed into a thin line; he wasn't as well-built as Nick was, since I don't think he did martial arts, but that wasn't my main concern. My main concern, and most likely Asuna's as well, was that sweat was covering his body and he was panting heavily. "He's sweating so much," Aki said, staring at the readout from the electrodes attached to his body. "If this keeps up he'll dehydrate soon." She glanced over at Nick's readout and frowned. "Weyr isn't as bad, but he's not looking stellar either." She sighed. "I wonder if we can get them to log out. Or at least warn them..."

Asuna and I shook our heads immediately. "No," Asuna said, "he wouldn't hear us. The Dive blocks everything out."

"It's not as extensive as the NerveGear," I said, still holding Nick's hand, "so some sensations get through, like heat, but for right now we have to act as though he can't see or hear us."

"Besides," Asuna said, staring at Kazuto's panting body, "the AmuSphere is designed with stuff like this in mind. If his heart rate gets too high, or he gets too dehydrated, it should log him out immediately."

Aki closed her eyes for a long time before sighing. "Okay," she said. "I guess we just have to wait."

I looked back at the screen to see the camera briefly shift to Rythin; he was sitting on the top of a nearby dune, watching the duel unfold with a frown on his face. I smiled slightly when I noticed that he had his right hand over his left - looks like he can feel my warmth through the AmuSphere. I can't do anything except trust him, trust that he has a plan. I know he'll come through, he always has before. No matter what the challenge was, he's always risen to meet it. I have faith that he'll be able to pull through here. I know he'll be able to do it. I trust him.

"Hey Mommy?" Yui said suddenly. "Try holding Daddy's hand, just like Aunt Argo. He'll feel the warmth of your touch and know you're here watching over him." I looked over, and saw her smile sadly. "Since I can't touch anything in your world, hold him for me, too." Aw, that's the saddest and sweetest thing I've heard. Poor Yui. I wish there was a way for her to come to this world, but I just can't see a path that would lead to it. The technology just isn't advanced enough yet. "I know he won't feel me there, but still..."

Asuna looked at her phone, then smiled softly. "No," she said, shaking her head. "That's not true. I'm sure he'll feel your hand too." She lifted Kazuto's limp hand and slid her phone under it, resting his hand on the display. "I know he will. We'll cheer him on... together." She placed her hands on top of Kazuto's, and bent down until her forehead was almost touching her hands.

"Mommy..." Yui whispered.

I looked at Nick again and reached out, tracing the line of his scar with the tip of my finger. "You mean so much to me," I whispered to him. Before getting stuck in Aincrad, I'd always been a loner; I was secure and surrounded by my information, and that was all I needed. Despite a small, teeny-tiny crush on Kazuto, I hadn't needed anyone but myself. "I know you can do this. You're the Tactician, the man I fell in love with, so make me proud." But this abrasive, selfish, damaged, vulnerable, _wonderful_ man worked his way into my heart and I don't know what I'd do without him. If I had to go back to that empty loneliness… "I love you," I murmured. "And I'll always be with you, no matter what."

I smiled and leaned over before gently kissing his forehead. "So beat this bastard and come back to me."

* * *

Things were not looking good. Kirito managed to dodge two thrusts to his neck and jump back, but he was still totally on the defensive; no matter what he did, he just couldn't shake Death Gun. And I couldn't help but feel that Death Gun was still just playing with Kirito, like a cat would with a mouse it's caught totally and utterly. Death Gun stabbed to the left, and Kirito blocked it before shifting his guard to the right, sweeping the beam saber up and knocking the point of the weapon away from him. He was staying alive thanks to his insane reaction speed, but that was all he was doing - he wasn't able to fight back in any meaningful manner, and his health was slowly draining with every attack he was forced to take from Death Gun.

I just wish he was able to know Death Gun's name. I mean, I get that he didn't want to know Death Gun's name, and I understand; I can understand not wanting to know the name of a madman and a murderer. I can even understand that Kirito wanted nothing to do with Laughing Coffin at all, that he just wanted to forget that the day had even happened. And he did succeed, in a fashion. A shame that his past came back to haunt us.

Death Gun forced Kirito to block two heavy overhead attacks, and the pressure of the blows made Kirito put all his weight on his front leg; suddenly, Death Gun dropped low and swept Kirito's leg out from under him with a nasty leg sweep. Kirito tumbled to the ground, rolling away from Death Gun's thrusts and jumping away just as the point of Death Gun's estoc slammed into the ground where his legs had been. He started shifting to the offensive, taking two heavy swings before slamming an overhead strike down on Death Gun that was blocked; at some point, he'd shifted to the heavier two-handed style of wielding his beam saber, and I frowned. His fighting style was optimized for efficiency, with no wasted movements or attacks. Giving up the versatility and speed of his one-handed style wasn't a good idea; Death Gun's style was like Asuna's, quick thrusts, almost like a fencer, and Kirito's style was slower than his by default. So he'd need to be as quick as possible to keep up, and heavier attacks isn't going to do it. I didn't even expect Death Gun to block the attack. And then the cloaked guy proved me right by rolling backwards and kicking Kirito in the stomach, flipping my friend over him and sending him crashing to the sand. Kirito immediately looked up and scrambled backwards, dodging Death Gun's thrust and follow-up slash. Still, it looked like it caught him in the cheek, and I gritted my teeth. Damn it, if I knew who he was I could use that information against him. Predict his actions, or taunt him, or _something_.

So who the hell was Death Gun? Kirito hadn't learned his name, but we needed it now. There had to be some clue, some sort of tell, some part of him that was left over from Aincrad other than his weapon! There was Kirito's fighting style and reflexes, my Future Step... so what was his? He thrust and Kirito blocked, shifting the weapon to the side with a spray of sparks; I was watching so intently it was like slow motion. The sparks were flying, then Death Gun struck again like a viper. Again, Kirito managed to shift it aside, reacting just in time, and then Death Gun struck a _third_ time. Time seemed to slow to a stop as the point of the blade scratched Kirito's cheek, leaving a bright red mark. I hissed under my breath, but Death Gun had overextended himself; his hood flapped back, and I found myself drawn to his eyes. Laughing Coffin... the laughing skull and red eyes... I knew those eyes. Death Gun twisted, preparing to make a stab directly at Kirito's heart, and my friend couldn't dodge. But it was too late; I had seen his face fully without being covered. Where did I know those red eyes from? And that laughing skull mask, I knew it too. I'd seen it before, I'd talked about it before.

 _Click._ I'd talked about this person in the briefing before the raid on Laughing Coffin. He had been one of the three main members of Laughing Coffin that we needed to watch out for - deadly with an estoc and absolutely, insanely in love with killing. He had been the first person to attack, according to the report from Schmidt and his guild, he had been stopped by Kirito non-lethally. I needed to remember, so I closed my eyes and imagined the room. Imagined standing in front of everyone, calmly explaining about the three killers to watch out for, the high-priority targets of capture. I'd pointed to the first image, PoH - the leader of Laughing Coffin, the man with the charisma to lead so many murderers. It wasn't him, his weapon was a massive cleaver. The next had been... Johnny Black. He wore the bag over his head and used the poison throwing knives...

 _Click._ Wait. I'd met all three of them before. When we were running through the forest to rescue Caynz and Yoruko and Schmidt. It had been PoH and Johnny Black and the man holding Yoruko at sword point had been... The third person on that list, the one with the skull mask and the glowing red eyes had been...

 _Click._

"XaXa!" I shouted. In the distance, Kirito's lips moved as he whispered the same words at the same time.

Death Gun jerked, the tip of his estoc missing its target and sliding by Kirito's side. "Red-Eyed XaXa!" Kirito shouted. Looks like he figured it out just at the same time as I did. "That's you, that's your name!" Death Gun - no, XaXa was off balance from missing the thrust, and Kirito was able to slice with his beam saber and nick XaXa's arm. The first strike he'd successfully made against his opponent, and I was filled with bloody satisfaction. We'd found you. There was nowhere for you to run and hide now, and that means you're done, XaXa.

XaXa and Kirito stood still, staring at each other for a moment - Kirito probably waiting for the attack, and XaXa reeling from having his identity revealed like that. My heart beat once, twice, a third time - and then a bullet indicator appeared, centered on XaXa's heart. I whipped my head around to see the bullet line stretching to where Sinon was standing tall at the top of a nearby dune, and laughed. "Kirito!" she shouted.

I felt a shiver run down my spine, and I could feel the wild grin on my face. This was it, this was what Kirito needed to distract XaXa! Sinon had him in her sights and he was forced to dodge the phantom bullet that was centered on his heart in addition to Kirito, and he couldn't possibly have the same kind of skill with Future Step that I did - he couldn't dodge two attacks like that at the same time. XaXa grimaced, then dashed towards Sinon faster than Kirito could catch him - but I was already there, standing beside her, before he could get a bead with his pistol. I drew Sinon's pistol out of my pocket and racked the slide before putting it to her head. "I'll kill her before letting you touch her," I said softly. "She _will_ live." The viper has claimed her as its own, and it will not abide having its prey stolen.

XaXa snarled and then was forced to jump back as Kirito appeared in front of him, swinging his sword. The beam sword hissed as it cut through the air; somehow, despite everything, Sinon used every last bit of her skill and whatever else she had inside to keep that bullet line trained on his heart. The world slowed down again, and I felt my mind kicking into high gear, burning every detail of this moment into my memory. Kirito had his sword raised high over his head, preparing for that one last attack that would end this, shouting a war cry as he swung - and then XaXa cackled madly and disappeared, his cloak turning him invisible. No! This will not end this way! Kirito reached out, trying to grab XaXa before he disappeared - but his hand closed on nothing but air. No, no, gods damn it, NO!

I felt the warmth on my hand, and I clenched my fist. If Kana was there in the real world, holding my hand... Asuna would be there too, holding Kirito's! He could feel the warmth there too! And Kirito did; his hand dropped to his waist, where his pistol was holstered, and he whipped it out like it was a second sword. There was that Dual Blades skill - and with a chill running down my spine, I could _see_ him, see the old Kirito lunging forward with Elucidator and Dark Repulsor. My grin turned bloodthirsty, and my eyes gleamed with madness; Kirito pulled the trigger several times, and each shot hit XaXa. He reappeared clutching his shoulder, the cloak's invisibility field damaged by the bullets, then lunged forward, his estoc flashing out; but his strikes were wild, panicked, the cornered rat lashing out and trying to bite its attacker. Kirito just spun gracefully through the attack, not taking a single point of damage, and then opened his eyes; for a second, I thought they were golden with determination, something I'd only ever seen twice before. Once, when he was fighting Kayaba, and once when he was scaling the World Tree to save Asuna. And both times I'd seen those eyes... His target had no choice but to die. With a shout, Kirito swung his blade, and XaXa couldn't dodge; Kirito's beam sword struck XaXa in the side, sparks flying everywhere as the energy blade clashed against XaXa's armor, and then with another shout and a push of effort Kirito split XaXa's body in half.

I felt calm inside, and I lowered the gun, tossing it into the side by my side. I wouldn't need that any more.

An explosion ripped through the air - Kirito must have severed a grenade or something - and both Kirito and XaXa's remains were sent tumbling. Kirito got up, though he was staggering slightly; XaXa, however, didn't. Kinda hard to stand when your legs are lying several feet away from you. Suck it, nerd. Then XaXa's estoc impaled the ground right beside his legs, and I felt a mix of emotions. One was confusion - as in how in the seven hells did the blade land point first and stick there? I mean, come on, it couldn't have been weighted _that_ poorly that it would fall point first. The other was a sense of being torn; one hand, I wanted the blade to stab him in the crotch, because that would have been hilarious. But on the other, no guy really deserved that, except for maybe rapists. Either way, I clapped Sinon on the shoulder in thanks and went down to join Kirito.

My friend was panting heavily, and he gratefully accepted the hand I offered to help him stand. Then we both whirled as XaXa's voice rose from his severed body. "Soon," he intoned. "It's not over yet. You can't stop me. He'll find you. And he'll-"

With a glare of disdain, I walked over to him and calmly stabbed him through the eye with my knife. "Fuck off, XaXa," I growled. "And by the way, red eyes are _my_ calling card now." His red eyes dimmed, and the sign appeared above his head - Dead. I stepped back from his motionless body and laughed; first, the laughter was normal, but it soon turned dark and bloodthirsty as I reveled in killing my target. Oh, _gods_ that feels so good! We're done now, and he's dead, what a beautiful ending.

"No, XaXa," Kirito ground out, from behind me, and I turned to see him walking towards me. "You're done. And we'll find your partner, too. You won't kill anyone any more. Laughing Coffin's dead." That is not dead which can eternal lie, and with strange aeons even death may die. Looks like you rolled the dice and they came up snake eyes, bastards. You're done.

"Sorry for kill-stealing, by the way," I said absently, giving XaXa's lifeless body a dismissive wave. "But I really wanted to get a good stab in, and you got to cut him in half and blow him up."

"Yeah, yeah," Kirito sighed, smiling wearily. "Let's go." We turned and walked away from XaXa, and a breeze kicked up, swirling sand and tossing Kirito's hair about.

We walked for a bit, before seeing Sinon approach us in the distance; after a few seconds, she was right in front of us, and we all stopped, staring at each other. Sinon and Kirito were grinning, and I was having trouble keeping a smugly satisfied smirk off of my face. Sinon set Hecate down and held her gun by the barrel, keeping it upright; Kirito silently reached out his fist, and Sinon gave him a fist bump. "...Good job," I told her quietly, and she nodded her acknowledgement.

Kirito looked up at the sky, hands on his hips. "It's over," he murmured, sounding remarkably drained. I looked up at the night sky as well, and grinned slightly; the sky above was remarkably clear, and I could see plenty of stars scattering the night sky.

"Yeah," Sinon agreed.

"I guess now, we should probably get this tourney over with, huh?" Kirito said.

Sinon nodded slowly. "Yeah, I guess we should."

Kirito stepped forward, close to her. I just glanced around, noting the recording cameras that were floating in the sky, and snickered. "With Death Gun out of the picture," Kirito murmured to Sinon, "I'm pretty sure the guy casing out your apartment's taken off."

"No sense sticking around to get caught," I said, shrugging. "If XaXa can't use his Death Gun, then, well... They don't want us to know who the partner is." I'm pretty sure it's Johnny Black or PoH, but that's just a gut feeling and I'm not entirely certain. I shifted my weight and grinned. "Either way, you're fine when you log out."

"But you should still call the cops when you do," Kirito added, "just to be safe."

"O...kay," Sinon said, frowning, "but... what am I supposed to tell them?"

"You could..." I stopped, thinking. If she told them she suspected a break-in, that might work, but at the same time it's possible they'd just ignore her, since nothing would be missing, and the killer was probably very careful. So breaking and entering was off the list, and she couldn't just say she felt insecure, they'd tell her to lock her doors and bolt the chain. "Huh."

"Oh yeah," Kirito said sheepishly. "Right." Then he blinked. "The guy we work for's with the government. We could ask him to send the cops to your place."

I frowned, then nodded. "Probably the best way to do it. The bossman can probably figure out some excuse or whatever."

Kirito frowned and looked to the side, hands on his hips. "But how are we going to get your info? Can't really ask for it in here." He frowned.

"...got any invisibility cloaks?" I asked dryly after a second. Both of them chose to ignore me. Probably for the best, really, since it was a tasteless joke.

Sinon just smiled. "It's cool, I'll tell you," she said, and Kirito gasped in shock. My eyes widened for a second. I'm suddenly very glad these mics won't pick up what we're talking about.

"A-are you sure?" Kirito muttered.

Then Sinon surprised both of us by leaning forward. "My name is Shino," she whispered into our ears. "Shino Asada." Then she rattled off her address. Huh. That was surprisingly easy. And, uh, where is that exactly...I imagined the map of where we were in the real world, then frowned. Crap, I'm terrible with directions.

"You're not going to believe this," Kirito said with a small chuckle, "but you're close to the place we're Diving from." Wait, seriously?

"Yeah?" Sinon asked, sounding excited. "Wow, no way."

Kirito grinned. "How about this? After we log out, we'll head over to you."

"You would?" Sinon gasped, smiling widely. I get the distinct impression she's more excited to see Kirito than she is to see me, though I can't really blame her. Given a choice between me and him, hells, _I'd_ pick him. Then she looked to the side. "No, actually, I'm good. A friend of mine lives near me, so I've got help if I need it. He's the son of a doctor, so if it makes you feel better I'll call him as soon as I log out." But what if that friend of hers is actually XaXa's _second partner_ ohhhh nooooo. Heh, like that'd happen. Something like that would just be ridiculous.

Kirito nodded with a smile. "Okay, but after we log out I'll still call the guy we work for and have him send the cops. If you're cool with that."

"Mm-hmm," Sinon murmured with a nod, "sounds good." Then she sighed and looked at us with an unimpressed stare. "But not good enough. You're just going to log out without telling me your info?"

"Right, sorry," Kirito said with a sheepish grin. "My real name is Kazuto Kirigaya, and this is Nick Weyr." I gave a small wave.

"That's how you got Kirito?" she asked, smiling. "Seriously?"

"Unimaginative, I know," I said.

Kirito stiffened. "Yeah, well, like either of you can talk," he muttered. Sinon blinked, before both of them chuckled. "Alright," Kirito said once the two had recovered their composure, "if we're ever going to log out of this thing we've gotta end BoB first."

I blinked, looking at them. "So how exactly is this going to work? I mean, I know you two want to have your duel, but should I just kill myself or something? I might have thrown all my grenades away when I was planning on fighting XaXa, and slitting my throat with my knife might be a bit awkward, so, uh..."

Sinon gave Kirito a studying look. "Man, look at you. You're all banged up." She shook her head. "There's no challenge in beating someone as thrashed as you." Kirito just laughed awkwardly. "Nah, I'll take you on in the next BoB. But you better not leave me hanging."

Kirito just made a disgusted noise, and I patted his shoulder. "Yes, you'll look like this when you transfer in again."

"Well," Sinon said, digging in her pocket. "Let's get this thing over with already." Wait, but... wait, what?

"How're we doing this?" I asked, confused. "It won't end until two of us hit zero HP, so... You shoot both of us? Kirito plays with his lightsaber a bit more? I perform ritual sacrifices to the Great Old Ones?" Ia, ia. Rythin fhtagn.

For some reason - maybe something I said? ...Oh. Sinon, get your mind out of the gutter, would you - Sinon snorted slightly before shaking her head and smiling at both of us. "No, Rythin, I think I have a better idea. I guess you two didn't hear what happened in the first BoB?" We shook our heads. Probably a research deficiency. "There were two winners."

"Huh?" I grunted.

Sinon reached out and took Kirito's hand, bringing it up to chest level, palm up. "The player who should have won let his guard down too soon, so the other guy gave him what we like to call a Souvenir Grenade."

"A Souvenir Grenade?" Kirito repeated. Hate to admit it, but I'm lost here too. Mind explaining a bit more? "The heck's that?"

"This," she said, placing a round object in Kirito's hand and then pressing the top of it. It started ticking.

I stared at the plasma grenade in his hand, then at Kirito. "Kirito, did you seriously fall for that literally right after she told us she was going to do it?" Kirito yelped in panic and tried to throw the grenade away, juggling it like it was a hot potato, but Sinon just laughed and threw her arms around him, hugging him tight. Sinon was smiling happily, while Kirito was laughing sheepishly. I, for my part, just sighed and shook my head, resting a hand on his shoulder. "You're a gods damn idi-"

Then there was a big explosion.

...Ow.

I could imagine the stunned, yet slightly 'well, yeah, that's Kirito for you' look our friends would have if they were watching the fight. Well, let's get going and log out already, and I swiped open my menu and hit the logout button. As the minute-long timer ticked down, I looked at the results screen. Kirito, Sinon and I were all at the top in first place - seriously, Kirito, you're an idiot - and it slowly scrolled down, revealing the names of everyone that died. Apparently, XaXa's name was Sterben in this game. Eh, I'm just gonna keep thinking of him as XaXa. Makes things easier to remember. Then the list reached the number of disconnected players, and I nodded. Yep, XaXa got two kills this time - Pale Rider, and somebody named Garrett. Well, sucks to be Garrett, I think. But that does give us a little bit of a clue; XaXa had two victims, and that means he had at least two partners. Sinon wasn't targeted until near the end, but it was still too far away for the Pale Rider killer to get there. Maybe whoever killed Garrett was the one going after Sinon? Possible. But we'd need to figure out the distances, and we'd have to figure out when exactly XaXa shot Garrett, and all that busywork could be put off onto the agent. Then the timer hit zero, and I was logged out of GGO.

And as a result I had to wait patiently, my lungs desperate for air, until my body remembered what gravity felt like and how it had to act to overcome said gravity. Stupid body. But that wasn't important; what was important was that when I pulled off the AmuSphere and opened my eyes, Kana was sitting there, her hand in mine, and smiling happily with tears in her eyes. "I'm back," I said softly.

"You're back," she said. Then she leaned forward and gave me a hug, completely ignoring how sweaty I was - holy crap I was really sweaty. I must have been sweating a lot during the showdown with XaXa. "You're back," she whispered, and I felt tears hit my bare skin.

"I told you, didn't I?" I said, gently patting her back with my free hand. "I'll never leave you. Ever." When she pulled away, her cheeks were a little red, and I smiled at her.

"Nnng..." I heard Kazuto moaning from his bed, and I looked over to see him pushing the AmuSphere off of his head. "Nick, remind me never to get blown up again."

"That was your own damn fault and you know it." Huh. My voice is super raspy. I looked around, and Kana wordlessly handed me a bottle of water. I cracked it open and drained a few refreshing gulps, before sighing and smiling at Kana. "Thank you."

She smiled back. "I had a feeling you'd need one, since it looked like you'd been dumb enough to dive in without one handy," she said, her voice taking on a teasing tone.

"Eh, I can live with this."

"Daddy! Uncle!" Yui's excited voice rang out, and I cracked a small grin before fishing out my phone from my pocket. I couldn't really move all that much until Aki removed the electrodes, and she was handling Kazuto's electrodes first, but I could still wriggle around and grab my phone. "Congratulations on winning!"

I held the phone over me so I could see Yui's smiling face. "Thanks, kiddo, but next time," I grumbled, "I'm just going to stab everyone and blow them all up. This whole 'take out one particular player to stop a mass murderer' stuff is bull." Aki moved over to me, finished with Kazuto, and she swiftly removed the electrodes from my body. Able to sit up once again, I did that right away and stretched, loosening muscles that had stiffened and feeling my spine pop and crack. Gah, I'm going to have arthritis when I'm thirty, at this rate. Then I looked over at Asuna; she was wiping at her eyes, talking to Kazuto who was busy putting his shirt back on. "Hey, Asuna," I said, and she turned to smile at me. "Doin' okay?" She appeared to have been crying slightly, and I'm not really sure why. All I know is, I don't want her crying.

"I'm fine," she said, smiling happily. "You're both safe."

"Of course we are," I said, waving a hand and swinging my legs off of the bed, searching for where I had left my clothes. Oh yeah, they're on the windowsill. As I was putting my shirt back on, something occurred to me. "Kana, catling, did you perhaps, by any chance, manage to record the livestream?" I asked ever-so-sweetly.

Her smirk was so smug I couldn't help but smirk in response. "Why yes, dearheart, I did," she replied in the same tone of voice. "Whyever do you ask?"

"There could be some interesting footage of that later on," I told her, "and I wouldn't dream of depriving Kazuto the chance to see himself in action. That just wouldn't be nice. That cave scene..."

"What cave scene?" Asuna asked me. "Kirito, are you okay?" My best friend had blanched at my words.

"He's fine," I said airily, waving a hand. "Maybe just a little tired from exerting himself so much in the BoB. Anyway, Kana, we should go over that footage tomorrow and make it presentable."

Kana smirked. "Oh, yes, yes we will."

The two of us shared a grin, then I shook myself. "Plotting aside, hey, Kazuto! We gotta call Kikuoka and let him know what's going on."

Kazuto snapped out of the terror state he was in - that I had partially put him in, to be fair - and nodded. "Y-yeah. Phone, phone, where's my phone..."

"I got it." I opened my phone and hit the speed dial I had set for Kikuoka's number, waiting patiently for him to pick up.

After it rang a few times, the line connected. "Agent Kikuoka speaking," the Agent said.

"It's Nick."

"Nick!" Kikuoka said, sounding surprised and pleased. "Good to hear from you. By the way, your friends are quite scary when they're mad."

I blinked and looked over at Asuna and Kana, mouthing 'What did you do?' to them. Asuna bit her lip and looked away, while Kana just grinned like the cat that got the canary. Figures I wouldn't be getting any answers out of them. "Whatever they did, I'm sure they were justified. Anyway, figured you'd want the answers you were looking for."

"I'm listening," he said, suddenly all business.

I started ticking off the points of an invisible checklist hovering a few feet in the air ahead of me. "One, Death Gun can't kill in the real world, he has partners that do it and time it to coincide with the gunshot in-game. At least two, maybe more."

"Good to hear."

"Two, the method of death is probably injection with some sort of drug. Unknown as to the drug type or method of insertion, but double-check the autopsy on the bodies for any foreign substances." Tick goes the little box. "Three, two more casualties in BoB. Player names Pale Rider and Garrett. Might want to figure out who they are and where they live so you can get the bodies out of there before too many people notice." Next item on the agenda, actually tell him the guy's name. "Four, we figured out who Death Gun is. Red-Eyed XaXa, a killer from Laughing Coffin." I heard Kana swear loudly, and I glanced at her to see her ranting under her breath; the few words I could pick out had something to do with 'idiot', 'notes', and punching Kikuoka. Have fun, beautiful, I'll hold him down for you. "If it helps, the name he used in GGO is Sterben. That should give you enough to find him, right?"

Kikuoka made a pleased-sounding noise, and in the background I could hear keys on a keyboard clicking. "Yes, that should be more than enough. Is there anything else?"

Kazuto made the universal 'give me the phone' gesture, and I nodded. "Kazuto wants to speak to you real quick, tossing him the phone." I handed my phone to Kazuto, and he put it up to his ear.

"Agent Kikuoka?" A pause. "Yeah, listen, I need a favor. Could you somehow send the police to this address?" He rattled off Sinon's address, then waited. Probably waiting for Kikuoka to confirm. "Yeah. A girl named Shino Asada lives there, and I think she was one of Death Gun's targets tonight."

"Shino Asada?" Asuna asked me.

"Sinon," I replied. "Blue-haired sniper girl, helped us take out XaXa." Asuna made a murmur of comprehension and stared off into space thoughtfully. After I turned away from her, I briefly wondered if I should have let Kazuto tell her. Eh, can't unsay the words, so whatever.

Kazuto had just about finished speaking to the Agent. "Okay, so you can get a car there pretty soon? Good. Thanks."

He handed me back the phone. "I'm back."

"Good job, Nick," Kikuoka said. "I mean it. We couldn't have done this without you."

I sighed. "Just make sure you reflect that gratitude in my paycheck. Later." I pulled my phone away and ended the call. So long as that's taken care of. "Aki? Anything interesting happen to our bodies while we were Diving?"

"You both got a little dehydrated, and your heart rate spiked a few times, but that was it," the nurse said, examining a readout before writing something down. She looked up and smiled. "Nothing that can't be be fixed by something to drink and a good night's rest."

I nodded. "Good to hear."

"By the way, Nick?" Kana said. "Turns out XaXa's handle in the game is pronounced _sterben_." She pronounced it with a 'sh' sound, instead of a sibilant.

"Huh." Must be foreign. Explains why I didn't get it, though.

She shrugged. "Apparently, it's something they use in hospitals here in Japan. It means a patient has died."

I frowned. "Well, I guess that makes sense. You wouldn't want other patients freaking out if someone died, right? It might make them relapse or something, or get all hypochondriatic, because that's totally a word, and call the nurses over every little ache and pain." Makes sense, I guess. Then I looked over and noticed Kazuto frowning, and I raised an eyebrow. "Something wrong, Kazuto?"

"I... Didn't Sinon say her friend was a doctor's kid?" he asked slowly, looking at me.

I felt a shiver run down my spine. I only felt that when I was fighting an enemy and something was about to ambush me, so I knew it wasn't good news. "She did, far as I can recall, yeah. You're thinking..." He's thinking that if the only place people use the word _sterben_ is hospital-related, then Death Gun and his accomplices have to be related to a hospital, and since Sinon's friend is a doctor's kid... Ah, crap.

"I'm just worried," he said. "I just don't want to think that Sinon could get attacked while we were this close by."

I shrugged. "Roger, bossman. Let's go, then. You're driving, though, because I have absolutely no idea where the hell her apartment is."

"Going out again?" Kana asked with a small smile. "Don't you want to take a break or something? I mean, you have been running around all day."

"Yeah, yeah," I said with a sigh. "But no rest for the wicked, right? Besides, this shouldn't take long. We get there, make sure she's fine, then get back to here." I paused. "By the way, Kana..."

"Mm?"

I fidgeted slightly, looking away. "Could you... could you stay with me tonight?" I asked quietly, my cheeks heating up. "I-I don't... After what happened today, I don't want to be alone."

Kana blinked, somewhat shocked, before smiling softly. "Sure thing, Nick. Just let me call my mom and let her know, okay?"

I smiled hesitantly before looking over to where Kazuto and Asuna were unsuccessfully trying to hide matching grins. "And what are you two smirking at?"

"Nothing," they chorused.

"...Right." I shook myself. "C'mon, Kazuto, let's get going. You're the one that's worried, so don't slow us down."

"Right." He gave Asuna a quick hug, whispering something to her, and then nodded to me. "I'm a little worried, but I'm sure Sinon's fine."

I sighed, following him out the door and down the hall. "Probably. But, I guess it won't hurt to check on her." We passed the stairwell, and I tapped him on the shoulder. "Let's take the stairs, it'll be faster than waiting for the elevator." He nodded, and we slipped inside the door, hurrying down the stairs. My legs felt a little heavy, though that was understandable, really. I'd spent a lot of time lying on a bed, and my time spent in-game always left me feeling sluggish. Guh. Good thing I wasn't driving, at least. My reflexes were always a bit off when I first woke up. Before long, we were out on the street and roaring down towards wherever Sinon used to live. I had to use that green helmet again, but I didn't really mind.

I really was glad things had worked out in the end. XaXa was destroyed, we were the victors, and that was good enough for my happiness. I even got to wake up with Kana by my side, and that was just fantastic in its own right. I wonder if Kazuto feels the same way about today... Somehow, I think he'll say today was pretty good. I mean, he did manage to hopefully defeat his demons and put the deaths at his hands behind him. Or would it be that he's accepted the burden he'd been trying to avoid the entire time? ...At the end of the day, I guess, I just won't ever understand. I just don't understand what it means for him to kill, just like he'll - hopefully - never understand what it means for me to kill. And I want to keep it that way, really... I've done so many things that if I were to redevelop a conscience now, I don't know if I'd be able to forgive myself or ask anyone else for forgiveness either. So I think it really is better this way, Kazuto in the light and me in the shadows. Besides, this way I don't really have to deal with people. Always a plus. But it had been a close call; I had come close to losing my friend to his past, and just knowing that frustrated the hell out of me. The world just kept taking and taking and _taking_ from me, and I was sick and tired of losing the things I cared about. There was no way I would let the world take anything else from me, not if there was any way I could help it.

I felt the bike pull to a stop, and I blinked and realized we were parked. Kazuto was getting the bike parked, so I simply hopped off and tossed him my helmet. "I'll go ahead and check on her," I said. "Catch up once everything's parked." He nodded and waved me ahead; I took the stairs up two at a time, hurrying. When I hit the landing, I turned to see Kazuto at the bottom of the stairs, so I just waited for him at the top. I mean, he was already there, so might as well, right? After he joined me at the top of the steps, we walked to her door. "Should... we knock?" I asked hesitantly, looking at Kazuto. He looked torn. "What if her doctor kid friend is -" There was a scream from inside, and I swore. "Answers that!" I reached out and tried the handle - it was unlocked. Didn't look like any sign of forced entry, though, but whatever. Worry later, save Sinon now.

I threw the door open, and Kazuto stepped through, taking two steps before bringing his knee up into a guy's face. The guy was - had been, rather, before taking a knee to the face - sitting on top of a girl with black hair and glasses, and I stepped inside. "Knock knock," I said, rapping on the door. "Candygram!" I'm a godsdamn land shark.

Kazuto was grappling with the boy; he tried to shove him back away from the girl, who until further notice I was assuming was Sinon, since she said she lived alone and there was a girl that kinda looked a little bit like Sinon - it was the hair really - and this was Sinon's apartment. The boy threw Kazuto against the nearby cupboard, but Kazuto didn't let that faze him, and threw himself at the boy again, tackling him to the ground. "Run, Sinon!" he shouted.

The girl pushed herself up slightly and stared at the two boys struggling in her hallway. Suddenly, her eyes widened as she stared at Kazuto. "Kirito!" she gasped. She looked over at me. "Rythin?"

"In the flesh," I said, kneeling slightly to help her up. "You okay, Sinon?" In the hallway, Kazuto forced the kid to his feet, both of them still grappling slightly. Neither was trained, at least, which was good. If the kid was trained in hand-to-hand, Kazuto could get hurt badly.

"Y-yeah," she stuttered. Then she shook herself. "Shinkawa... He's one of Death Gun's partners!" I froze, then swore under my breath. Fucking statistics I swear to gods.

"Get off me!" the kid shouted, getting the upper hand. Kazuto was still a little thin, I guess. Makes sense that he'd be stronger.

But worry about that after making sure Sinon's okay. "Are you okay?" I asked Sinon, glancing over her body. Her hair was a bit mussed, but since the kid was apparently trying to _rape_ her I was just glad nothing more was wrong. "Did he inject you with anything?"

"No," she said. "But Shinkawa has an injector! It's the drug they use!"

"That so?" I growled? "Gimme a sec, then." Running over to where the kid - Shinkawa, apparently - was kneeling on top of Kazuto, punching my friend over and over again, yelling about how it was all his fault or something, I pivoted and slammed the tip of my boot into his chin. There was a cracking sound, and Shinkawa went sprawling, crying out in pain. Also, amusingly, literally crying, probably because of the dislocated and or cracked jaw. There was some blood coming from his nose, but I think that's coming from Kazuto's Falcon Knee to the face. I set my foot down, wincing slightly as my knee complained - right roundhouse kicks weren't my best - and knelt down next to Kazuto. "You okay?"

He winced, pressing at his cheek. "I'll live."

I nodded. "Good. Go over to Shinkawa and get whatever drug he's got stashed on him. Sinon said it's some sort of injector?" I raised my voice, directing the question to Sinon, who was still trembling in the hallway.

"Yeah," she said, taking a deep breath. "It's some sort of high-pressure injector. It should be in his pocket."

"I'm gonna call the agent, let him know what's going on," I said, stepping over next to Sinon and pulling out my phone. I hit the speed dial for Kikuoka and leaned against her counter, staring off into the distance. I'm not really sure what Shinkawa was doing, but I'm just glad we were able to stop him in time. I guess it's a good thing that we came to check on her after all. The line connected, and without preamble I said, "It's Nick, I'm at the address we gave you earlier. There's been a sliiight bit of a problem."

"What happened?" Kikuoka asked immediately, not wasting any time.

"We showed up at Sinon's apartment, worried about her safety, and when we got there -"

"Kirito!" Sinon suddenly screamed.

I whirled around, and my heart stopped beating; Shinkawa had somehow managed to flip Kazuto over against the bed again, despite being injured, and had...

Shinkawa had withdrawn a small metallic object from his coat pocket and pressed it to Kazuto's chest. As I watched, he pressed something and a small 'fft' sounded. A small switch inside me flipped, and my eyes went dull as I realized Shinkawa had just injected Kazuto with the drug they used to kill. He had just killed Kazuto.

Oh. Everything feels calm and distant now.

* * *

… **In the words of a nigh-immortal vampire, Shinkawa, "You done goofed".**

 **Many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.**


	12. Small Steps

**Chapter 12: Small Steps**

* * *

 **December 14** **th** **, 2025**

Kazuto was dead. If not dead, dying quickly.

"Nick?" Kikuoka asked, sounding frantic. "I heard a scream, what's happening?"

"One of Death Gun's partners has just injected Kazuto with the drug designed to stop his heart," I reported in a flat and emotionless tone. "We had attempted to subdue the partner before that. He is wounded. The extent of his injuries cannot be determined at this time." I closed the phone. I'd said all I needed to say, and so there was no more reason to speak with the agent.

If Kazuto... If Kazuto... I can't hear the viper. It's silent now. It's gone. How strange.

Sinon gritted her teeth and ran into the main room. She looked around briefly before grabbing a stereo system that had been sitting on a small table in the center of the room. Grabbing it, she lifted it over her head then brought it down against the boy's skull with a shout and the thunk of a solid object against bone. The boy was knocked away from Kazuto and fell, lying on his back, motionless. Probable brain damage if unconsciousness lasts for extended period of time. The injector skittered across the floor and stopped next to a box of smashed pastry. "Kirito!" Sinon gasped, crouching next Kazuto's shuddering form.

Silently, I stepped into the main room and walked over to where the boy was lying, unconscious. "Nn... He got me..." Kazuto moaned, shaking and clutching at his chest. "It happened so fast... Didn't even see the needle..."

"I know," Sinon said. "I'm gonna take a look, okay?" She unzipped his jacket and gasped; Kazuto gritted his teeth. "Hang on! I'm not gonna let you die like this!"

I stared down at the boy, tilting my head slightly. "If he dies," I murmured, "this one's life is forfeit." Everything seems so quiet now. I can't hear the viper in the deafening silence. I can't hear the viper.

Probability of Kazuto's survival is low, and therefore I will kill this boy. However, it needs to appear as though I killed him accidentally in self-defense. Perhaps it should appear that he was throttling me? That would give me an excellent reason to be attacking him that would increase the probability of my avoiding prison for manslaughter. Now, how to kill him. It should be quick and painful, as leaving him to suffer would leave the possibility that he could be saved. Crush the trachea? Perhaps. It had merit, letting him drown on dry land. Possibility of being able to execute the maneuver, relatively high. Probability of being caught after executing plan, relatively high. Sinon is currently aware the boy is unconscious and would testify that there was no way for him to attack. Other possibilities are needed. Due to lack of alibi or scapegoat, excessive brute force is a poor choice.

However, it could be made to look as an accident. Sinon has already struck the boy in the head, causing unconsciousness. Sacrificing her would pose no issue, and would increase chances of my own freedom. Yes, lower risks that way with the same reward imply that path is preferable to the previous choice. As being imprisoned would separate me from Kana, being imprisoned is unacceptable; therefore, I cannot be accused and another is needed in my place. To implicate Sinon, I should first ensure that she leaves the room so as to not create a witness. Once I am alone with the boy, it should be simple to strike him in the head with the stereo. I need to ensure my fingerprints do not remain on the weapon, however. In addition, I need to ensure that there is as small a sign of a second impact as possible. Sinon will only remember striking him once, and I will need to use that as the killing blow. How to do so... Striking the boy again could work given precise application of force, but keeping fingerprints off of the stereo would prove difficult without alerting Sinon. Therefore, it is required that I have an excuse for my fingerprints to be on the stereo. When police arrive, I will pick up the stereo in their view. That will explain why my fingerprints are on the weapon used to eliminate the boy.

Plan of action, submitted. Reviewing plan: accepted. Preparing to execute actions once previously determined condition, Kazuto's death, has been met. I stared at the boy without emotion, waiting patiently for Kazuto to live or die.

Hearing silence behind me, I turned and looked to see Sinon staring at Kazuto's chest. I took a closer look, and the drug was... I blinked, confused. The drug was on his chest? It should be in his bloodstream, that doesn't... My head started to pound and I wavered slightly, pressing the heel of my palm to my forehead as if trying to crush the pain from the outside. Sinon dug into her pocket for a handkerchief and cautiously mopped up the drug; when she was done she sat back, and a small black circle was on Kazuto's chest. An electrode. Aki had missed one. She had missed the electrode and Shinkawa had injected the drug onto it and Kazuto wasn't going to die and _Kazuto wasn't going to die._

I raised a trembling hand to check my pulse; my heart was pounding, and I felt weak at the knees. Thank the gods, Kazuto was okay. He wasn't going to die. He was okay and holy fuck me I have a blinding headache gods damn this hurts. Trying hard not to think. I looked at Kazuto, and he was still shaking and groaning in pain. Sinon placed a hand on Kazuto's chest and waited; after a few seconds, she removed it, and I'm assuming by the look on her face if Kazuto was going to have any effects from the drug whatsoever he'd have exhibited symptoms by now. "Um..." Sinon said carefully, "hey... you got this weird... thing on your chest."

Kazuto stopped grimacing, blinking in confusion. After a second, he sat forward and stared at his chest. "Please tell me that's where he hit me with the needle," he said.

"It looks like it, I guess," Sinon said. "What is that thing, anyway?"

"An electrode," I said, speaking past the pain in my head. I just needed a bit to come down from my rage-induced murder zone, and I'd be kinda okay. Kazuto just sighed, staring at the electrode. "It's from a heart monitor that Kazuto and I were hooked up to during our Dive into GGO."

"Heart monitor?" Sinon gasped, looking at both of us.

I opened my mouth to explain, but Kazuto subtly shook his head, and I changed what I was going to say at the last second. "...Never mind," I said instead.

"You know," Kazuto said, sighing and shaking his head, "you scared the hell out of me, Sinon."

She grabbed the collar of his shirt and shook him. " _I_ scared _you_?" she yelled. "How do you think I feel?" She was trembling slightly, and seeing her shake I was suddenly reminded that I needed to find a seat or I'd be finding myself on the floor in a few seconds. So I just sat down, folding my legs under me. "I thought you were going to _die_ just now, you dumbass!"

"Gah... Hey, easy!" Kazuto gasped out, and I couldn't help but smile in relief that my friend was back to normal. Sinon relaxed her grip and just hung her head, resting her hands on Kazuto's chest. After a second, she took a deep breath. Kazuto raised a hand to pat her shoulder, or maybe give her a hug, but she sat up and shook her head. Then she turned to look past me at Shinkawa, who was still lying on the floor, unconscious, and Kazuto looked at him as well. "He's not... dead, is he?" Kazuto asked.

I moved over and checked his throat for a pulse, placing two fingers under his jaw along the artery. I felt a slow but rhythmic pounding, and I nodded. "He's got a pulse, but if he doesn't wake up soon I might be a little worried about brain damage." Well, to be fair if he was Death Gun's willing accomplice he was probably already a little messed up in the head, but Sinon's love tap to the back of his skull could be dangerous. Still, desperate times, desperate measures... My gaze drifted down to his Adam's Apple, and I was fixated; it would just be so easy to kill him, all I'd have to do was press and he'd be unable to breathe and that would serve him right for almost -

I froze and clamped down on that line of thought _hard_. Damn but I need to take a break from things involving violence, at least until my mental state restabilizes.

Sinon looked at the unconscious boy, then at the corner where the injector and the smashed cake were lying, and sighed. "You're crazy," she said to me and Kazuto. "But thank you for coming."

"No," Kazuto said, "thank you for clocking him when you did." He smiled at her. "Sorry we couldn't get here sooner." Sinon stared at him, mouth slightly open, and he raised an eyebrow. "You... okay?"

"Mm-hm..." Sinon murmured, looking down. She clenched her fists on her legs and started shaking; after a few seconds, tears started falling. I looked at Kazuto, panicking slightly. I can't handle tears, I can't handle girls, this is your job, fix it fix it fix it! Kazuto frowned slightly, then gently rested a hand on her shoulder.

Yeah, I'm gonna get out of here. I stood up, gingerly stepping past her and picking up the box of smashed pastry, moving it over to the small kitchenette and placing it on the counter. Some of it might still be salvageable, though somehow I doubt it. I opened it up and gave the contents a once-over before shaking my head and pushing it to the side. Sinon could deal with it when she was back to herself. Speaking of... I leaned forward, hiding my face from the two in the room, and clenched my eyes, tensing all of the muscles in my body that I could and holding it for a slow three count. After that, I relaxed them all at once, and felt limp. I started shaking, my mind playing that moment over and over again without my permission. Kazuto almost died, Kazuto got injected with that needle. And if he had died, I would have killed Shinkawa without hesitation. I breathed in and out slowly, trying to get myself back under control, and took off my glasses, putting them on the counter in front of me before burying my face in my hands. The corner of my eyes burned suspiciously and I gritted my teeth until my damn eyes stopped rebelling. It's just my emotions overcompensating for what happened earlier, that's all. Fuck. I just want this to be over so I can spend time with Kana.

I straightened up, sighing slightly, and grabbed my glasses; before I put them back on, however, I noticed Kazuto watching me. I gave him a wan smile and put my glasses on again. I'd noticed it when she was starting to cry, but Sinon's glasses didn't actually have any prescription to them. They were a defense mechanism, I think, just like mine were. A barrier to keep the world out. Oh well - maybe there'll be a day when she doesn't need them. Unlike her, though, mine do correct my vision. And I hate touching my eye, so fuck contacts. After a second, Kazuto returned the smile, nodding to me. I just felt a little relieved that my friend knew what I was feeling - that kind of knowledge used to scare me, thinking that someone else could guess my emotions, but now that several people can it doesn't really scare me that much anymore.

After a bit, Sinon sniffled and wiped at her eyes, before standing up to come join me in the kitchen. "How ya doing?" I asked her quietly, staring at the other wall as she ran the faucet and splashed some water on her face.

"How do you think?" she snapped weakly, her voice wavering slightly. I cracked a small grin and shook my head slowly, mindful of my pounding headache.

"Crappy, if my hunch is right. But you're alive, at least." I turned to look at her and saw her staring at the smashed cake. "Did you find your strength after all?"

She hesitated, then nodded. "I think I did."

"Good for you."

We stood there in silence, Kazuto resting on the ground against Sinon's bed, until a police car siren sounded, growing closer. A few seconds after it cut out, someone knocked on the door. All three of us jumped simultaneously, and Sinon moved to go for the door. I held my arm out, and motioned for her to be silent; moving to the door and standing beside it, I covered the peephole with my hand first. If the person outside was waiting for the light to be covered, he'd only get my hand and not my eyeball - paranoid, yes, but I'd read about it in a book once and figured it was a good idea. After a second and no pain, I removed my hand and glanced through the peephole; it was the police. Nodding to Sinon and Kazuto, I opened the door. "Yes, officer?" I asked calmly, making sure not to let him see the unconscious boy in the bedroom.

"Is this the residence of a Miss Shino Asada?" he asked, and I glanced over at Sinon. Your ballgame now, then.

"That's me," she said, and I opened the door fully before stepping back and joining Kazuto in the living room, letting the policeman do his job.

* * *

 **December 16** **th** **, 2025**

The events after that terrifying night were a bit of a blur. The kid had gotten some vague sort of consciousness back, despite the head trauma, and was almost immediately arrested under assault and some other legal mumbo-jumbo charges that I didn't really pay attention to. As for myself and Kazuto and Sinon, we were taken back to the hospital we had just come from and had some tests run on us. I was fine - my leg had stopped hurting a few minutes after recovering my senses - but the doctor still recommended I stay the night in a hospital room, just in case. I gave the doctor a flat stare and told him in no uncertain terms that I was going back home and spending the night with my girlfriend despite whatever objections he wanted to throw my way. From what I gathered, Kazuto was going home as well, but Sinon wasn't; last I saw of her, she was asleep in the hospital room, probably coping with the stress of being attacked by one of her friends. A few cops were standing guard outside her door; likely the ones that had been questioning her. I also had to deal with some questioning by the police, but since the only part of the story I was involved in was kicking Shinkawa in the face they ran out of questions rather quickly. After that, I was free to go; Kana met up with me and we walked to the nearby bus stop escorted by a police officer. Kazuto, Sinon and I were going to be under guard for a few days, just in case something went wrong with the arrests and we were attacked by XaXa or whoever the third Death Gun person was.

I ended up telling Kana everything about the scare on the bus ride home, and all she did was reach over and give me a hug. It felt nice; with her presence, the frozen knot in my stomach started to thaw a little bit. If I clung to her a little tighter that night, well... She'd never tell a soul about my terror.

Monday was more or less wasted, since I kept zoning in and out. However, one thing did occur, and that was that sometime during my time spent in ALO, Kazuto informed me that oh hey we were going to go pick up Sinon sometime Tuesday once school let out, and that we were meeting up with the agent again. I had no real excuse, so I just sighed and accepted it as part of getting paid. Kana also mentioned that he'd asked her for help on a project, and when she explained what was going on I shrugged and said that sounded like a good idea. It did mean she wouldn't be in school on Tuesday, so I was a little lonely during class, but it wasn't anything I couldn't handle. And in any event, I was turning my own pet project over in my head - it should work, but it would require Yui's help.

When we arrived at Sinon's school, I parked my bike a little bit away from the school and walked to the gates, only to see Kazuto standing there, bike parked only a little bit from the entrance. He was staring up at the sky, totally oblivious of the strange looks he was getting from the students currently streaming out of the school, and I sighed. Gods damn it, Kazuto, can't you be subtle for once? Though... this might actually work out in my favor. I waited a slight distance away from the entrance, far enough that most of the students were goggling at Kazuto and ignored me completely, and I pulled out my phone. After five minutes had passed, I frowned, impatient. I walked over to Kazuto and tapped him on the shoulder. "Sinon's running late," I told him. "I'm gonna go look for her."

Kazuto blinked. "Aren't we not supposed to enter the school grounds if we aren't students?"

I just shrugged. "It's only against the rules if I get caught. Besides, if I act like I belong then they'll just assume I do and not bother me." Kazuto nodded reluctantly and I slipped inside the school gates. Hm... Probably not going to have any luck wandering around aimlessly, so... I blinked, putting on the social mask of being a student at the school. "Pardon me," I said smoothly, slipping in front of a girl that was walking alone. "But would you happen to know Shino Asada? I can't seem to find her."

The girl nodded, looking at me. "Uh, yeah... She's behind the school, I think."

"Thank you very much." I smiled and nodded, moving forward through the whispering crowd that was staring at Kazuto and his motorcycle. Sometimes it was good to be the invisible one.

As I walked down the path that led to the back of the school, I noticed three girls - probably about Sinon's age, maybe? - walking ahead of me, chattering amongst themselves about seeing the look on someone's - a girl's - face. They didn't seem to notice me, but I started following them silently, trying not to let them realize I was there. Sinon's friends, maybe? If they were, it might be funny to watch them interact with the girl.

Suddenly, they all stopped chattering and stared at someone. I glanced around the corner and saw Sinon sitting there, bundled up in a coat and scarf. There was an air of... I don't know, a predator staring at what it thought was prey coming from the trio of girls, and I licked my lips. Maybe they weren't Sinon's friends. "Next time you wanna meet," I heard Sinon say, "be on time." The girls stiffened, and I smirked slightly. Seems these girls don't know the Sinon I know.

"Seriously?" the girl on the left said. "Girl, you been acting way too cocky lately."

"She's right," the one on the right said. "We should teach you a lesson." My eyes narrowed, but I didn't bother doing anything - I just calmly leaned against a nearby tree, making sure Sinon saw me. She had stood up, and when she saw me I could see a small bit of recognition flicker in her eyes, but she didn't say anything. Guess she wanted to deal with the girls herself. The thing that was bugging me, though, was that the two that had spoken were obvious the third's lapdogs. Kinda like how I always stayed behind Kazuto when we were walking, they did the same thing. Showing deference to the girl in the middle. That's the one I have to watch.

Speaking of, the girl in the middle stepped forward and slammed her foot down, scuffing up a bit of dust. There was a small standoff happening between Sinon and these girls, and I watched impassively. She could handle herself, and if things did get too bad I'd help her out a little. Then the middle girl straightened. "No you guys, it's cool," she said, and I nodded to myself. Definitely the leader of this little bunch. "We're all friends here, right? It's good to have friends." Her tone shifted, and I just crossed my arms. "They come in real handy. Especially when you need a loan." The other two sniggered - probably something they'd done before. "Speaking of," the middle one said, raising two fingers, "I need twenty K. Buddy." She said that so calmly, too, like she was asking for a pencil or something. Was past Sinon really letting them get away with that? No, there was something I was missing.

And by the way Sinon clenched her fist, I knew that something interesting was about to happen. She slowly raised her hand, and at first I thought she was going to punch the smugness right off of the center girl's face, but then she removed her glasses instead. Shifting to battle mode, I guess - that's just as good too. Less violent, but more capacity for mind games. "I told you before," Sinon said, her breath puffing out in little clouds in the cold air. "I'm not lending you guys any money."

"You'll change your mind after what my brother gave me," the middle girl said, and I almost laughed. Was she threatening Sinon somehow? Blackmail? Eh, the second she does something stupid like that the second I get to watch the new and improved Sinon beat her face in.

"I doubt it," Sinon replied impassively.

The middle girl smirked before rummaging in her bag. After a second, she pulled out a pistol and pointed it at Sinon. Wait what the hell even I know not to point a gun at someone, godsdamn. And the only things I know about gun safety are from surfing the net last night. Then I actually comprehended what I was seeing; my eyes widened, and my jaw dropped. Fucking hell, if that was real, I couldn't move. Didn't want to startle her and accidentally cause Sinon to get shot. That would suck. Also Kazuto would be mad at me for getting Sinon shot, which would also suck. I took a deep breath and tensed slightly. No, it probably wasn't a real gun. Speaking of... I took a look at Sinon and frowned slightly. Sinon had gone pale, and I recognized the signs of another one of her panic attacks. Maybe I should intervene... "Get this," the girl said. "He told me not to point this at anyone, but what does he know? I mean, you've seen one before, so it doesn't bug you, right?" Stupid, stupid, stupid little bitch. If Sinon doesn't give you what you have coming then I will, if only because you're pointing a _gun_ at someone. "Or does it? Asada." The girl shifted, moving the gun towards Sinon. "Get on your knees and say you're sorry."

The two yappy girls clamped their hands over their ears. "Waah!" they wailed simultaneously. Then the middle girl, still smiling smugly, tried to pull the trigger. And something in my mind just snapped.

Silently, I moved over looked around - there was a bucket nearby, and an empty can lying on the ground. Perfect - I grabbed both, turning the bucket over and placing the can on top. If they were going to mock Sinon, I'd let her show them what she could do. And if that failed, well, I hadn't bruised my knuckles for a while. Their jaws could fix that.

The girl had failed to fire the gun, and was pulling the trigger repeatedly, staring at it dumbly to figure out what was going on. "Crap, it's not working..." she muttered before pointing it at Sinon again. I stepped back, leaning against the tree, just as a switch in Sinon flipped modes.

Sinon stepped forward and roughly grabbed the girl's wrist, eliciting a small cry of pain - and I smirked slightly, she had it coming to her - before snatching the pistol from her grasp, handling the gun with the proper care it deserved. By which I mean she pointed it away from the girls, finger away from the trigger. Because she wasn't a stupid idiot. "Government issue M1911. Your brother has good taste." She waved it slightly. "It's not really my style, though. And for future reference, it only fires when the safety's off." The other two girls were watching, horrified, while the leader was holding her wrist. Sinon turned and took aim at the target I had set up for her - her eyes shifted to me briefly, and I smirked before gesturing over to it. I could have sworn I saw a small grin before she focused, bringing the gun up and looking down the sights. She sucked in a breath, and then squeezed the trigger; the gun let out a small hiss of air, and a bullet struck the can dead on. Good going, Sinon. You've got the eye of a hawk. As the can clattered to the ground, Sinon sighed before flicking the safety back on and turning to the trio.

"Hey," the leader said, raising a hand in submission and stepping back, "woah..."

"Your brother's right," Sinon said, staring at them steadily. "You shouldn't point this at people." She reached out and lifted the girl's hand, placing the gun in her open palm. "Here." As Sinon picked up her bag and slung it over her shoulder, the girl just slumped to her knees, her two followers following her - heh - a second later. Good job, Sinon. Masterful display of dominance. Sinon stopped, and turned back to the girls. "See you around," she said, and then turned and walked away from them, leaving them staring at her in shock. I just smirked slightly.

Of course, the second she was around the corner, she dropped her bag and leaned against the wall, panting heavily. Nerves finally caught up to her, I see. I didn't say anything, I just moved off of the tree and walked past her slightly. I stopped, waiting patiently. I was glad Kazuto wasn't here for this, actually, because he would have stopped and offered his aid; but Sinon didn't need that. She couldn't _have_ that. She needed to find the strength to take that next step on her own, and until she did I would be in front of her. "They say the first step's always the hardest," I heard her whisper to herself, and I smiled slightly. She's learning. Slowly, I heard her footsteps - one at a time, erratic and unstable rhythm, but she was walking on her own strength. As she reached me I fell in step beside her, matching her pace. She'd proven she could do it on her own, so I wasn't really needed.

As we walked around the school, I sighed when I saw the small group of six or seven girls all staring at Kazuto. Sinon mumbled a confused sound, and when she turned to me I just shrugged and walked forward, leaving the school. I glanced at Kazuto, but he was busy staring at the sky. "I've never seen anything like that," one girl whispered to another. I had a feeling this was going to be interesting, so stopped by the side of the small group and watched Sinon with interest. The second she realized exactly who was waiting outside the front of her school, she stifled a small yelp, and several people noticed.

"Hey, Asada!" one of the girls said, coming over to her. "Do you know that guy?" There is nothing faster at sniffing out a rumor than a high school girl. And I'm dating the best one. Fear my power. Mwahahah.

"Is he your boyfriend?" another asked. When Sinon didn't reply, just walking through the crowd, they both brought their hands up to their mouths and cooed at what they thought was a romantic little scene. Heh.

Sinon stopped in front of his bike, holding her bag with both hands. "Really?" she asked. I looked at the crowd, and all the girls were staring, some even cupping a hand around their ears to hear the conversation. "When I said I'd meet you I didn't think you'd park yourself in front of my school!" she hissed.

"Hm?" Kazuto blinked, then looked at her. "Oh. What's up, Sinon?" Sinon just sighed under breath, frowning. The watching girls were all giggling, and I think one had just taken out her phone to start texting. T minus thirty seconds before this is all over the school.

"You're telling me everything tomorrow!" one of the girls, the one with braids and brown hair, called before giggling.

"Ah... Is... everyone looking at us?" Kazuto asked slowly. I just shook my head. Gods, you're an idiot sometimes, buddy.

"You parked in front of the gate," Sinon said reluctantly. "We should just leave." Kazuto shrugged and tossed her Sugu's green helmet; right away, it was clear she had no experience actually putting on a helmet. After she fumbled with the chin strap for a few seconds, Kazuto reached over and hooked it up for her. I heard the girls coo even louder, and I smiled before turning and making my way to my own bike. Yeah, the school rumor mill was going to make things difficult for Sinon for a few days. Just glad I could help her out, in my own sadistic way. Eh, it was funny.

I arrived at the same building as before, locking my bike up right next to Kazuto's and heading inside to find Kazuto and Sinon waiting for me. Though Sinon was still a little red from the embarrassment of having Kazuto pick her up outside the school, I very carefully refrained from teasing her too much about it. Which is to say I waited until we were inside the elevator and alone before bringing it up. "So, Sinon, Kazuto, when did you two start dating?" Sinon just spun and punched me in the arm, and I grinned unrepentantly. "Oh come on, I'm sure everyone at the school thought you made a lovely couple!"

"I hate everything," Sinon muttered, burying her face in her hands. Kazuto, for his part, seemed oblivious to it all. I just ignored that, since it was just how he was. "And you're not helping things, Rythin."

"What?" I asked innocently. "I didn't say anything."

"Exactly," she growled. "Because you kept quiet, all of those girls think I'm..." She blushed again, and I figured I'd let her find out the full extent of the misunderstanding later. That could be interesting when she finally realizes that it's not just those girls that think that.

The elevator rang and we stepped out; I deliberately lagged behind to make it look like I wasn't part of their group. "Welcome, sir, ma'am," the maitre'd said, bowing politely. "Party of two?" Sinon blinked before flushing a bright cherry red, and I tried to hide a smirk. She probably just thought it was almost a -

"Hey, Kirito, Rythin! Over here!"

Kazuto just sighed, hiding his face, and I grinned slightly, dropping my thread of thought. "No, we're with that gentleman," I said without missing a beat as I stepped forward to join them. Kikuoka could be a pain, but he was definitely a predictable pain. He gestured for us to sit down and we did, me taking the corner seat again, while Kazuto and Sinon sat side by side, facing Kikuoka. "Same deal as last time?" I asked him, and he nodded, smiling cheerfully.

"Help yourselves," he replied. I glanced over the menu, and decided to order a few things - I didn't like sweets, but I could use some of their finger sandwiches. This had been a stressful assignment and I wanted a treat. Sinon flipped open her menu and stared at the prices with huge eyes, speechless.

She looked at me and Kazuto uncertainly, and Kazuto snorted. "Don't be nice. He's just spending the hard-working taxpayer's money, anyway." When Sinon glanced at him, Kikuoka just smiled and nodded.

"O-okay..."

After we all placed our orders, it was down to business. "Hello," Kikuoka said, pulling out a business card and handing it to Sinon. "I'm Kikuoka from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications Technology." I didn't react, but I had a very strong feeling he was more than just that. Probably something a little higher... Kazuto mentioned he had followed him, once, but he lost the agent at a train station. Thing was, the government branch in the direction that train was running? Ministry of Defense.

"He-hello," Sinon stammered, bowing back hastily. "I'm Shino Asada."

As we all sat down, Kikuoka frowned. "I'm sorry. It's our fault we placed you in a situation like this."

"No, it's fine," Sinon said.

I rolled my eyes. "Make him stew in his failure, Sinon," I said, giving the agent a steady look. "If he was able to do his job properly, you wouldn't have been in the line of fire in the first place, right?"

Kikuoka blinked, his smile becoming a little hurt. "But Rythin, you never expected Death Gun to be a group of people, right?" I growled under my breath at him, but didn't reply. He was right, technically, damn him. "I suppose I should explain, then." He sipped from the coffee cup in front of him, then laced his fingers. "I say group, but there were really only three members. At least, according to what Shouichi Shinkawa, the leader, said."

Kazuto sighed. "Shouichi... That's XaXa, right? The guy who attacked us in BoB?"

Kikuoka nodded. "That's right. He and his younger brother Kyouji were arrested Sunday, and we were able to use the AmuSphere records to confirm that he was logged in to GGO at the time of the attack." A waiter started approaching with our orders, and he smiled. "But this can wait. Go on, enjoy."

I shrugged and started munching away at my food, not seeing a reason to wait. I didn't even hesitate until I had finished everything I ordered; when I was done, Sinon had eaten half of the cake she had ordered and was sipping at her tea. "It's nice," she murmured.

Kikuoka smiled. "I'm glad you're enjoying it. Now..." He reached into his bag and pulled out the tablet, turning it on. I noticed that Sinon tensed slightly, and that Kazuto had stiffened as well. "Shouichi Shinkawa was the son of a hospital director. Health-wise, he'd been sick since childhood. His father pretty much gave up on him, so early on he made it obvious he was going to hand the hospital over to Kyouji. According to Shouichi's testimony, his father arranged for Kyouji to have personal tutors since elementary school, and even taught him personally at times." Sinon winced slightly and looked down at her teacup. That's right, this Kyouji was her friend, right? "Even so, the brothers seemed to be close growing up. But then Shouichi dropped out of high school and got obsessed with MMORPGs, and in 2022 he got trapped in Sword Art Online." Kazuto and I exchanged a swift glance. "After he got out, he only spoke to Kyouji about it. He bragged about how in that world, he was a real mass murderer, and how he was feared." Kikuoka looked up from his screen. "In Kyouji's eyes, his big brother was a hero." I hissed under my breath, irritated by that for some reason. So everyone else thinks we're broken, but the only person who doesn't is a wannabe-mass murderer. Sure, makes sense.

He looked back down at his tablet. "On what was likely Kyouji's suggestion, Shouichi started playing Gun Gale Online. He didn't have any phobia about the VR world, but he didn't really have that much enthusiasm when he started playing. That all changed when they got the idea to create the Death Gun character when Shouichi got the invisibility cloak through a real money trade."

"An RMT..." Sinon said. "That must have been really expensive..."

"No doubt," Kikuoka said. "Though Shouichi got a large allowance from his father every month, so he could definitely afford it."

Kazuto grimaced. "So that sniper rifle and the estoc were bought with money..." He muttered. "Good thing SAO didn't have something like that."

Kikuoka nodded. "That's true - if it did, it could have led to something like this. Using the cloak and some binoculars, Shouichi started stealing the real world info from the other players." I was privately very pleased with myself; I'd managed to guess that.

"Invisibility in towns, hm?" I murmured. "Sinon, go tell Zaskar to ban that from being used on the streets."

"Wh-what?" Sinon said hurriedly. "You go do it. But that means the mantle was the reason Death Gun exists, right?"

"I suppose you could say that," Kikuoka said. "Around this time, Shouichi's little brother Kyouji was having issues with his avatar, Spiegel." He looked down at his pad, reading off of the notes written there. "Spiegel was an AGI type, which XeXeeD used to recommend. But XeXeeD shifted his stats to an STR-VIT combo, and because Kyouji followed XeXeeD's original advice, he found his avatar was essentially worthless and was infuriated. When Shouichi discovered this, he gave Kyouji XeXeeD's name and address IRL." Kikuoka's stiffness using the acronyms told me he wasn't used to saying them, which was slightly amusing for some reason. "Then, they started discussing how to kill XeXeeD and create Death Gun. Shouichi claims they weren't serious about it in first, but as they continued discussing the plan day after day, they realized they could get away with it. For their plan to work, they needed two things - a master key card to break the electronic lock and a way to inject the drug, suxamethonium chloride, more commonly known as succinylcholine." Yeah. Because that's common knowledge. I don't think I can even remember how to pronounce the drug. Sucksinyl... No, tsuchino... Agh, forget it.

Kazuto frowned. "A general hospital should have a master key card for emergencies, right?"

Kikuoka whistled. "Amazing, Kirito. Anyway, the government was promoting a new kind of keyless sensor locks that..." He stopped and shook his head. "But that's classified information and beside the point. Anyway, they stole the key card and the high pressure syringe from their father's hospital. They performed thorough research, narrowing down the list of victims to those that lived alone in low-security apartments. Shouichi used the key card to break into their first victim's apartment, Tamotsu Shigemura."

"XeXeeD," I said. "Right? That was the trial run, to make sure they could get away with it."

Kikuoka nodded. "They worked out the exact time he was supposed to Dive and make his appearance on MMO Stream. At that time, Kyouji logged in as Sterben and shot XeXeeD before announcing himself as Death Gun. Simultaneously, Shouichi injected Shigemura with the drug using the high-pressure syringe, and Shigemura suffered a heart attack, seemingly due to Sterben's bullet." He sighed. "Usujio Tarako, their second victim, was killed the same way."

"I'm pretty sure that everyone was still making fun of them, though, right?" I asked. "I mean, I did a little bit of searching after you hired us, and a lot of the message boards I found were joking about Death Gun, calling it a hoax." We'd done the same thing, kind of, when we discussed it - we just said it's a stupid rumor, a coincidence, and moved on.

"Exactly." Kikuoka looked at me and nodded. "Instead of being scared of Death Gun, like they wanted, the other players in GGO treated it like some kind of joke. Shoichi was furious, and so they decided to come up with a larger plot during the Bullet of Bullets final. They found three players that fit the same criteria as Shigemura and Tarako - the players you know as Pale Rider, Garrett... And you, Miss Asada."

This must have been the first time Sinon had heard everything laid out in front of her; she was staring at Kikuoka, mouth open. Kazuto sipped at his tea and then put it down on the saucer in front of him. "Killing three people would make things hard for just the two of them, though."

I nodded. "If they picked only the players in a certain location, that would draw attention to their own whereabouts and make it more likely for them to get caught." XaXa was too smart for that; even in Aincrad, his killing patterns were erratic, never on the same floor twice in a row. Always hopping around. Made it hard to pin him down, but we got lucky when he was in the Laughing Coffin hideout when it was raided.

"Yeah..." Kikuoka agreed. "To be in sync with Death Gun, the person doing the real world killing needed to make certain they were at the person's house each time. In order to make sure this would work, they recruited a third player, Atsushi Kanemoto."

Kazuto frowned. "Where'd they find him?"

"Simple," Kikuoka replied. "Kanemoto was an old friend of Shouichi's. They were both part of Laughing Coffin in SAO. We found out his handle there was Johnny Black. Sound familiar?"

I felt my lip curl, and Kazuto's grip on his teacup tightened until his knuckles were white. I genuinely disliked Johnny Black - he used poisoned weapons as well, and I couldn't stand having someone else use my method of fighting. It was disgusting. Kazuto nodded and looked away. "Yeah, he worked with XaXa."

"His weapon of choice was a poison knife," I growled. "Bastards."

Kazuto frowned, staring at his tea. "They both attacked players and killed them... Damn it, if I had know this would happen... I should have..." Sinon reached out and touched his hand, shaking her head slowly. I could tell what she was saying - don't ever say that you should have killed someone. Don't ever say that because it puts you on that path of no return.

But I should have killed them.

"In Shouichi's testimony, he didn't mention Kanemoto at all, so we have no way of knowing whether he was involved in the Death Gun plot the entire time, or just for the Bullet of Bullet killings," Kikuoka said, tapping his tablet.

"Why not ask him?" Kazuto asked, but Kikuoka shook his head.

"The authorities raided Kanemoto's apartment as soon as his name was given as one of the killers, but it was empty. We found hair that matched his DNA in the victims' houses, so it's likely he was the one that killed Pale Rider and Garrett."

"How'd he get the syringes?" I asked. "Shouichi again?"

Kikuoka nodded. "According to Shouichi, he gave Kanemoto four syringes of succinylcholine. One would be fatal, but Shouichi wanted to be sure of the plan's success and gave Kanemoto a backup for each of the targets." So it's possible there are still two more doses of kill drug in the hands of a madman obsessed with killing. Great fucking job, Kikuoka, gold star for you. Idiot. "That's why the police had you under guard until this morning. We should have him in custody soon enough, though, so there's nothing to worry about."

"Uh-huh," I grunted, supremely unconvinced. "Sure. Just saying, if I'm attacked I'm defending myself with the assumption my life is being threatened. Force will be used accordingly." Kikuoka frowned slightly, but nodded; he couldn't really tell me not to defend myself.

"They put Kanemoto on Pale Rider and Garrett because he lived nearby. Sinon, on the other hand, was Kyouji's." He looked at Sinon. "See, Shouichi usually did the killing, but for this one job, Kyouji insisted on being the one to do it."

"Um..." Sinon began, and we all looked at her. "Is that what he wanted? For real? Did Shinka-" She cut herself off. "I mean, Kyouji say that?"

"No," Kikuoka said, tapping his tablet again. "His brother's the one who gave us all the details of their plan. Kyouji still refuses to talk."

"He does, huh..." Sinon murmured, looking down.

"As for Shouichi," Kikuoka said, picking up his tablet again, "he's sticking with the story that everything about the Death Gun concept, including the murders, is just... part of a game. That his actions here, like gathering intel on victims, prepping for the murders, and committing them, were no different than in SAO." He isn't wrong, so to speak; both would need careful planning to ensure that as few risks were taken as possible. SAO was like a murder training simulator, in that sense, I guess.

"The dark side of VRMMOs," Kazuto murmured, and I looked at him. We had been thinking the same thing, I guess. "That's what it is. His reality got a lot less real." So, in non-Kazuto terms, XaXa took a flying leap off of the pillar of sanity once he got back from SAO and realized he couldn't kill with impunity any more. I'd mock him, but I came close to making my own swan dive. Thank the gods for Kana.

"Good point," Kikuoka said, and I stiffened. His voice had taken on a sharp tone. "And how are you two handling yours?"

"My reality is wherever Kana and my friends," I said simply. "That's the only thing that matters to me." Kikuoka just nodded; he had my psych profile, he knew what made me tick. At least, that's the only assumption for how he played me like a fiddle at the start of this - which was slightly galling, but more impressive than anything. He'd seen through my several layers of deception and hit the frequencies that would resonate with me the strongest, and I'm determined to take my loss gracefully. It's all part of the game, after all.

Kazuto, on the other hand, looked out the window. "I feel like I left a part of me back in SAO," he said. "So right now, there's less of me here than there was before. I don't know."

"You don't know?" Kikuoka asked suddenly, and I shifted into high alert just on the tone of voice alone, let alone the suddenly scary shiny glasses. How _does_ he keep doing that? "Do you wanna go back?"

...I might, honestly. It was nice, really, where my only responsibilities were ones I chose to accept. No needs to go to school, or eat, or sleep, or... grow, really. I could remain as I was forever. Even my appearance was static. But I'd never admit that to anyone except Kana, because that was just asking to go to a therapist. As for Kazuto, he just leaned back and waved a hand. "Seriously?" he asked. "How could you ask me that?"

Sinon looked at him. "Um... Wait a sec. You're kinda contradicting what you told me the other day."

"What?" Kazuto asked, looking at her. I leaned forward as well, interested in this. I didn't remember him saying anything about wanting to go back.

"You said there's no such thing as a virtual world," she said, "remember? That, like, wherever you were, that's your reality." I vaguely remember him saying something kinda like that. Maybe. It was a stressful situation and vague philosophizing like that - is that a word? Meh - wasn't going to stick with me. Sinon looked down. "Where I am, right here? This world is my reality." She smiled. "And even if you told me this was a virtual world, it would still be reality to me. You see what I mean?"

"I guess..." Kazuto said, looking away. I'm going to hold fire on my own particular method of seeing it, but then again that's just me. Sinon is free to hold her own beliefs. Even if they don't match with mine and are therefore wrong. Sarcasm aside, if Kana isn't there with me, it's not the real world. Then Kazuto smiled back at Sinon. "Yeah, you're right." He folded his arms. "I gotta hand it to you, Sinon. What you said just now might be the only good thing to come out of this nightmare."

"Oh, put a sock in it," she said, punching him in the shoulder. He grumbled slightly, giving her a half-hearted glare. I, on the other hand, was smiling broadly. If this is going to be their interactions, this is already going to be fantastic and is just making my decision regarding Sinon to be shaping up as one that's better and better. That'll have to wait, though, since all the pieces aren't in place yet. Not yet. Then she stopped, looking sheepishly at the agent.

"Sorry," he said, "I'm with Kirito on this one." Does he use Kazuto's game name solely to annoy him? I kinda think he does, since he's using my real name consistently whenever Kazuto's not around. If I think of it like that, and assume the agent's a far better player at the game than I thought... That changes quite a bit. Enough that I think I might be able to pull off my gambit later. Then he shifted, his glasses hiding his eyes again. I wish he'd stop doing that, it unnerves me. Even if I don't look at his eyes, he should still have them. "Well, I've told you pretty much all we've found out so far, and I'm pretty sure you know what happened after the end of the Bullet of Bullets. You have any questions so far?" My eyes were drawn to the bandage on Kazuto's cheek - it was hiding a rather spectacular bruise from where Kyouji had landed a particularly mean punch. It just really made me want to kick Kyouji in his jaw again. Gods that had been satisfying.

"I do," Sinon said. "Has there been any word on what's going to happen to Kyouji yet?" That's right, he is or was her friend, right?

Kikuoka frowned and folded his arms. "Based on his brother's confession and their behavior, he'll most likely be sent to a medical detention center. I doubt either one knows what reality is any more."

"No, I don't think that's true." At Sinon's declaration, we all blinked and looked at her. "I don't know anything about Kyouji's brother - I've never met him. But I've known Kyouji a long time, and, well... I think his reality was Gun Gale Online." And so when XeXeeD spread the false information, he sabotaged Kyouji's actual growth, not just the growth of his character? Hm. Or maybe I'm just reading too much between the lines. I do that occasionally. Sinon raised her hand and stared at it, grasping the thin air. "He had pretty much given up on this world. There was nothing left for him other than GGO. So he made that his reality." I frowned. So, what the people trapped in Aincrad did? We were in that game all day every day for two years, and that became a separate world, a separate reality. I was always aware of this world, it's just that when I was in Aincrad, it wasn't important because I couldn't access it. I suppose if this world was useless, or lost to me forever, I could see Alfheim becoming my only reality.

But it won't, because I have my friends. They're what anchor me to this world, and whatever world they're in.

"He'd spend hours in it," Sinon said, sounding almost nostalgic. "Grinding away, boosting his EXP, trying to be the best... I guess the stress got to be too much for him."

"From playing a game?" Kikuoka asked, confused. "I know you can lose track of time, but reality?" Don't play dumb, Kikuoka. I know you know more about games than you let on. Kana seemed to have realized something about him, and when I asked she wouldn't tell me, not even if I paid for the information. That refusal alone told me enough. I was proud of her, really - she stuck to her principles of never giving out the name of a beta tester, even while giving me the information. I'd already given her a small bag of chocolate as a 'gift' - a 'gift' for a 'gift', instead of payment for information.

"Sure," Sinon said, looking down at the table. "At some point, Kyouji just swapped out one for the other. His real life... for his virtual one."

"Okay..." Kikuoka said, doing that stupid shining glasses thing again. Why? Why do you keep doing that? And why am I so fixated on it? "But why?"

"I don't know," Sinon said. "But I wish I did. Kirito, Rythin..." She turned to look at us, though Kazuto had his eyes closed, deep in though. "Why do you think he did it?"

"Don't know the guy," I said. "Without knowing him, I can't guess." I may be good at picking up patterns in games, but I'm bad at the patterns in life. People are hard on an individual level, and I'm bad at guessing what they'll do until I get to know them. Once I can solidify my mental projection of them, I can guess at their behaviors, but until then...

"To get stronger," Kazuto said without hesitating.

Sinon didn't say anything for a few heartbeats, then slowly nodded. "You're right. I guess I was the same way. When it comes down to it, maybe all us VRMMO players are the same. All we want is to get stronger." ...Stay out of my past. It's behind me for a reason. I frowned; I don't want to be reminded of who I was before Aincrad, before Kazuto and Asuna and before Kana. "Mister Kikuoka?" she asked suddenly. "I'd like to go see him, if that's alright. There's so much I want to tell him, like what we were just talking about. And other stuff I've been thinking - if it's okay!" She hurried to add that last bit.

Kikuoka just smiled and nodded. "You're a strong person to want to. And I for one think it's a great idea. He can't have visitors yet, but when he can I'll let you know." He pulled back his sleeve and glanced at his watch; seeing that made me twitch almost involuntarily. Great, now I have a neurosis about watches. Fucking Death Gun. "Well, I have to get back to the office now."

"Okay," Kazuto, nodding towards Kikuoka. "Thanks for taking the time."

"Yes," Sinon added. "Thank you for talking to us."

I just grunted.

"Don't even mention it," Kikuoka said, waving his hand. "You guys risked your lives, and god knows how many you saved. It's the least I can do." He stood up. "Oh, by the way, Kirito. Rythin." We both paused, Kazuto sipping some of his tea, and looked at him as he reached for a pocket inside his coat before drawing out a small envelope. "Death Gun - or, Shouichi Shinkawa, or Red-Eyed XaXa, or whatever you want to call him - asked me to give you a message." I looked at Kazuto; messages from deranged mass murderers were usually not good things. "If you don't want to hear it, say the word and I'll tear it up."

Kazuto and I glanced at each other, and I nodded my head deferentially. It was his decision. He glanced at Sinon, who was watching us both, and then nodded. "We'll hear it," he said.

"You got it," Kikuoka said. "He wrote..." He cleared his throat. "'If you think this is over, it's not. You don't have what it takes to end this. Sooner or later, you'll realize that. It's showtime.'" Don't have what it takes? I'm already willing to kill, what more does he think I need? Or maybe he's referring to Kazuto there. Whatever. He's a crazy, let's not listen to his words. Everyone knows that crazy people speak nonsense. "That's it."

Kazuto wrapped one hand around his other fist, then looked outside the window, not saying anything else. Kikuoka packed up his things and started to leave; I followed him, leaving Sinon and Kazuto at the table. "This is just a guess," I said, "but Kyouji should spill in six months or less."

"Why's that?" Kikuoka asked, turning to me.

"I didn't bring this up at the table because I'm not sure, for one, and two, because Sinon probably would disagree, but... Gun Gale Online's servers delete the account after six months of not paying the connection fee. Once his connection to the other world is gone..." I trailed off, letting Kikuoka connect the dots from there.

Kikuoka looked at me. "You're thinking he'll come back to this world once he loses that one?"

I shrugged. "Like I said, it's possible. I don't know, I don't make a habit of trying to predict other insane people. It just gives me a headache."

Kikuoka nodded. "By the way, Nick, Sunday night, over the phone..."

"...was something that happened and neither of us will discuss ever again," I said smoothly. I was not going to discuss what happened to me with him. Not now, not ever if I could help it. "I'm sure you understand my desire for privacy." You're keeping secrets too, so don't go judging me for doing that too.

"Of course," he replied smoothly - too smoothly. Either I was being paranoid, or he really was working for the Ministry of Defense. Probably both. Since, y'know, I don't exactly have that great a track record with social events.

Eventually Kazuto and Sinon joined us and we all went down the elevator together; my phone buzzed in the elevator, and I glanced at it to see a message from Yui. I scanned what it had to say, and then looked up at Kazuto with surprise; he looked at me, then grinned slightly. I just shook my head in exasperation, before nodding. Really? This might not be a good idea, but I'll go along with it. Is this what Kana had spent all day on, I wonder? Knowing my girlfriend, yeah, probably. I was a little surprised to learn that Asuna and Rika were in on this as well, but hey, the more the merrier, right? We walked out on to the streets and separated there; Kikuoka left to get into a taxi, waving merrily, while the three of us prepared to go get on our bikes. "Hey, uh," Kazuto said to Sinon, "Sinon?"

"Hm? What's up?"

Kazuto scratched his cheek. "Are you... free right now?"

Sinon glared at him slightly. "What do you mean, free? Free for what, exactly?"

"Well I'll just be on my way and let you two lovebirds have fun," I said, stretching and grinning at the death glare Sinon shot at me. "Kazuto, right now?" He nodded, and I shrugged. "Gotcha. See you there."

'There' happened to be the Dicey Cafe, Agil's bar in the real world. I enjoyed visiting, though never to actually drink any alcohol - for several reasons, first being I was underage and second and more important being that me with lowered inhibitions? That was a disaster just waiting to happen. Still, the environment was nice and it kinda reminded me of America; for obvious reasons, since Agil was African-American by his parents. I didn't actually remember my birthplace, since I was only a kid when we left, but that didn't stop the Dicey Cafe from feeling familiar to me. Maybe it was all the Uncle Sam posters, who knows.

Either way, I got there and waited patiently for Kazuto and Sinon to arrive, playing a game of solitaire on my phone and checking the forums for any updates in regards to Trinity. When I heard the engine of Kazuto's bike, I pocketed my phone and straightened up, looking around; a few seconds later, the two showed up and Kazuto parked the bike right by the doorway. Rude, Kazuto, what if there was a fire and people needed to escape? ...On second thought, good job, Kazuto. Sinon swung her legs off of the rear seat of the bike with ease and hopped down before looking at the ramshackle shop with a little bit of concern. "So... This is where you're taking me?"

"A terrible location for a first date, I know," I drawled, shaking my head in mock-disapproval. "And asking me along to be the third wheel, have you no shame, Kazuto?"

Kazuto just shook his head at me, rolling his eyes. "Yup," he said to Sinon. "There's someone inside I want you to meet." This could end one of two ways, and I'm not sure which way is better - tears or Sinon getting angry at him and or me.

Kazuto opened the door, and the first thing I heard was Rika's voice. "Well, about time," she said from her barstool where she was leaning on the counter, next to Asuna and sipping at a cup of tea. Kazuto just sighed slightly. "You made us wait so darn long I went and had two slices of apple pie. If I get fat it's all your fault."

"How's that my fault?" Kazuto asked, grumbling. "Geez."

"Yeah, Rika," I said, shaking my head and leaning on the door frame. "You can't blame him for something that's genetic."

"Nick, just shut up before I hurt you," Rika threatened.

"You couldn't hurt me if you tried. I would know, I've let you." We were just getting warmed up when Asuna calmly cleared her throat, and we instantly quieted down. I glanced at Sinon, who was watching us all with an air of confusion and a little bit of apprehension. Yeah, welcome to the club, we're all mad here.

Kazuto entered the bar, Sinon trailing behind him uncertainly, and I brought up the rear and closed the door. After the door was closed, I felt someone wrap their hands around my waist, and I smiled before patting Kana's hands. Missed you today, catling. I followed her to a seat around a table, sitting in the chair next to her. "How'd it go?" I whispered to her.

"Found what we were looking for," she whispered back. "Though at this point, what happens next is up to the girl."

Kazuto and Sinon had stopped a little bit from the bar. "Come on, Kirito," Asuna said, "aren't you going to introduce us?"

"Huh? Oh, right, sorry." Kazuto gestured to Sinon. "This is Shino Asada, a.k.a Sinon." Sinon bowed slightly. "Gun Gale Online's third superchamp."

"Don't say that," Sinon murmured to him.

Asuna frowned slightly, and Rika folded her arms before giving Kazuto the evil eye, and I snickered under my breath. Honestly, he has no luck when it comes to getting away from the women he's attracted - though to be fair, he probably didn't want to get away from Asuna. Kazuto flinched back under the combined weight of their disapproval, and cleared his throat. "These are my... friends from my time in SAO. Rika, a.k.a Liz, blacksmith and swindler..."

"Eh?!" Rika's happy smile turned to a shocked expression immediately. "What the hell'd you call me?" She lunged forward, trying to take a swing at Kazuto, but he just stepped aside; off-balance, Rika stumbled forward and crashed to the ground, coming to a stop just by the table I was sitting at.

"You okay?" I asked casually, looking over at her and debating whether it was worth prodding her with my foot. "That was embarrassing even to watch. Like watching a professional acrobat screw up the landing, fall over, and land face-first. Hilarious, but embarrassing."

"Shut it, Nick," Rika growled, picking herself up. She didn't try taking a swing at me; she did, once, back when we'd first come out of SAO, and it ended poorly for her. Very. If she tried it now, I wouldn't care as much, but she'd learned her lesson.

Kazuto had just let Rika do her thing. "And that's Asuna," he said, gesturing to his girlfriend who was sitting and smiling. "The Berserk Healer." _Yesssssss_. That name was keeping in traction, and I subtly exchanged a fistbump with Kana under the table. "Real name, Asuna Yuuki."

Asuna laughed slightly. "Berserk?"

Kazuto turned to where Kana and I were sitting. "And the one sitting next to Nick is Argo, the Rat. Her real name is Kana, and she's -"

"An info broker by trade," Kana said, interrupting Kazuto. "I buy and sell everything about everyone." She grinned smugly. "And I do mean everything and everyone."

"Best info broker in the game," I said, shaking my head. "With the swelled ego to match."

"Hey," she said, gently shoving me, "not nice. Can't I show off a _little_ for the new girl?"

Sinon was watching this uncertainly. Makes sense; coming into an established friend group was always awkward for anyone, let alone someone like Sinon who - if this afternoon's little scene with the bitches three had been any indication - had been bullied in the past because of her trauma with guns. "So," Kazuto said, gesturing to an empty table, "Wanna have a seat and get something to drink?"

After everyone shifted to a table - though Kana and I stuck at ours, since it was right next to their table and we didn't want to crowd them - and had something to drink, there was some light chatting going on, just basically discussing the events of GGO and Death Gun. "That's what ster - I mean _sterben_ means?" Sinon murmured, staring at her drink. "A term hospitals use for death... What was he thinking, giving his avatar a name like that?"

"My guess?" I said. "He was arrogant. He wanted people to know he was the grim reaper, or death incarnate, or whatever. People always want others to find their work and be impressed, so..." I shrugged. "He didn't think that little bit through."

"If I were you," Asuna said, "I wouldn't try to find some deeper meaning in the name he gave his avatar. A lot of time, it boils down to whatever a player sounds cool." Let's see... Mine is my name reversed and smoothed, Kazuto's is first syllable of his last name and last of his first, and Kana's is based off an old slang term. Silica was a cutesy version of silico, a molecule that was two oxygen atoms and the silicon atom Keiko was named for, Asuna's was pretty obvious, but I didn't know why Rika chose Lisbeth.

"Oh, that explains it," Rika said, pausing from sipping her drink. "This whole time I thought you gave your avatar your name because you lacked imagination."

Asuna leaned over and elbowed Rika in the shoulder. "Zip it!" Rika flinched, muttering in pain before laughing. "I do so have imagination! Lots of it!"

"Okay, geez!"

"Whatever," Asuna sighed. She looked over at Sinon and smiled; however, the poor girl just looked away, and Asuna's smile slipped. So much stuff is happening, and I don't know Sinon well enough to read why she did that. Shame, really, since I like being able to guess.

Then Rika clapped, and we all looked at her. "So, anyway," she said, "I'm super stoked you're here! It's always cool to meet another girl VRMMO player."

"You said it," Asuna said, smiling. "I hope we can be great friends, Asada," she said, smiling at Sinon. Well, there you go, Sinon, real friends. Not those other... things from before. Sinon just looked away; probably thinking about what happened last time people called themselves her friends. That one was easy enough to read. Or maybe she was just shy, that could be it too.

Silence fell over the table, the only sound breaking it the rhythmic squeaking of a glass Agil was cleaning behind the counter. Kazuto looked at Asuna and nodded slightly, and she nodded back before turning to Sinon. This was the breaking point; depending on how this went, we were either locking Sinon into our friend group or driving her away forever. Kana glanced at me, wordlessly asking what I thought was going to happen - she could be very expressive with just head nods and a raised eyebrow - and I shrugged. I didn't know this Sinon well enough to predict her actions. The Sinon in GGO? Maybe. But not this one. "Listen, Asada," Asuna began. "...Shino." Yeah, Asuna and Asada were getting a little confused in my mind. Glad she switched. "There's another reason for us asking you to come here today."

"What is it?" Sinon asked, straightening up and gripping the fabric of her skirt. Everyone looked so serious, it was no wonder she was a little nervous.

"Sinon," Kazuto said, "I'm sorry to put you on the spot like this..." He bowed his head. "I, uh... Nick and I told Asuna, Liz, and Argo what happened to you when you were younger."

Sinon's eyes widened. "Wha..." She turned to stare at me, and I just stared back impassively, putting up my poker face. She wouldn't get anything from me.

"We - I didn't have a choice, we needed their help!" Kazuto said, hurriedly. I'm not sure if he's trying to throw me under the bus or not, really. Stupid pronouns. Since, this was all his idea, but I went along with it, I'm just an accomplice.

"Huh?"

"I'll explain," Asuna said. "We wanted to help you, so we paid a visit to the town where you used to live."

Sinon gasped, staring at them. Her face made me think she was leaning a little bit towards the 'driving her away' forever route, and my lips narrowed. "How could you?" she whispered, her voice trembling. "Why would you do that?!" She gritted her teeth and the volume of her voice rose to match her rising anger.

She pushed back her chair and stood up to leave; before she could get very far, however, Kazuto reached out and grabbed the sleeve of her uniform. "Wait, Sinon," he said. "They found someone who wants to meet you." I glanced over at Kana, who gave me a small smirk. Well done, beautiful, I'm proud of you. Finding someone specific in a day? Impressive. "I can't let you leave until you hear what they have to say. It might hurt, and I'm sorry." His grip on her sleeve tightened, and his hand started trembling. "But I can't sit by if there's a chance what they say helps."

"Who is this person?" Sinon asked. "Wh-what do they wanna tell me?" I almost felt bad for her, really. Given that the sum total of her experience with the town she used to live in seemed to be 'You killed someone so FUCK YOU' I couldn't really blame her for being nervous.

Kazuto glanced over at Rika, who had silently walked over to the door to the backroom while Sinon and Kazuto had been talking. She nodded and pulled the door open before stepping aside, waving a hand to whoever was waiting in the backroom. And I just now noticed this, for some reason, but the layout of the Dicey Cafe was strangely similar to Agil's shop in Aincrad and Alfheim. Bizarre. A woman and a young girl walked out from the back room, and they took their seats as Sinon sat back down in her seat cautiously. I could tell she didn't know who they were just by the guarded look on her face. Once the mother was seated, she bowed her head; the kid looked over, startled, and then hurriedly bowed her head as well before sneaking a peek back at her mother to see if she'd done it right. Beside me, I saw Kana smile, and I felt a moment of discontent; would she want kids? Could I _give_ her kids? "Sorry," Sinon mumbled. "Do I... know you?"

The woman straightened up. "Sachie Oosawa," she said. "You're Shino... Asada, aren't you? I'd like to introduce you to my daughter." She looked at the girl. "Her name's Mizue. She's four years old." The young girl smiled happily, beaming at Sinon. Sinon just blinked, confused. "I don't know if you remember, but I used to work at the post office." Ah. Explains how she knows Sinon, and why Kazuto et al think this will help her. She didn't seem to hate Sinon, so that's good, I guess. Sinon gasped and stiffened; probably realizing who exactly this woman was. "I'm sorry," Oosawa admitted, bowing her head again. "This is really hard. See, I... I should have done this ages ago. I'm so sorry it took this long." Her eyes started to tear, and she wiped it away with a forefinger. "I never apologized... or thanked you for what you did." Tears started spilling down her cheeks, and I glanced at Kana. She just looked back at me and shrugged. Composing herself, Oosawa placed a hand on Mizue's forehead, and the little girl smiled happily. "I was pregnant with her the day that man came and tried to rob us. What you did... It wasn't just my life you saved, you saved the life of my little girl, too. Thank you so much. If it weren't for you..." She bowed again, Mizue following suit a second later.

"I saved... your daughter?" Sinon whispered. Was it really that hard to comprehend, Sinon? Did Kazuto need to give you the talk about the birds and the bees and what happens when two humans love each other very much and then fuck?

"Sinon," Kazuto said, stepping toward her. "Time to let go. You've been blaming yourself for way too long." The rest of us, since we didn't really have a place in this little family drama, just watched at the end of the bar; Agil was nodding approvingly, while Kana, Asuna, and Rika watched, smiling. I was just propping my head up, observing. "I'm not saying you're wrong to do that, but..." He sighed, then took a deep breath. "It's just... Whatever guilt you feel about what you did, you've got a right to consider the lives you saved, too." Looks like he learned something while fighting XaXa. Or maybe that's just how he looks at things. "You've got the right to... to think about those people, and forgive yourself." Crap, was he going to cry? His voice was getting tight. "That's it. That's what I wanted you to know." He clenched his fist and stepped back; he was shaking.

At the sound of a chair being scooted back, Sinon looked over to see Mizue walking to her. After a second, the kid dug into her little yellow school bag and pulled out a small folded piece of paper. It was a crude children's drawing, with what I assumed was an apple tree, a sun, and three figures - labeled 'Me', 'Mom', and 'Big Sis Shino'. Sinon stared at it in shock, and Mizue held it out to her; Sinon took it gingerly. "I made it for you!" Mizue said, and her words sounded rehearsed. Like her mom had told her what to say. "Thank you for saving Mommy. And for saving me! We love you!" Finished, she beamed at Sinon.

The drawing crinkled in Sinon's grasp as tears started streaming down her face. Mizue reached up and touched Sinon's hand; she jumped, but Mizue just smiled. Slowly, Sinon smiled as well and reached out to join hands with Mizue.

I could see it, a trick of the light or maybe just my imagination; the Sinon I knew from the game, putting Hecate to the side and letting go. Looks like she found what she was looking for.

* * *

 **Yay happy endings for everyone. Except the people in jail, they don't get happy endings. Because they're jerks.**

 **Honestly, it's weird; together Johnny Black and XaXa were kinda like what Rythin would be if he snapped and ended up joining Laughing Coffin. One uses a poison weapon and the other has glowing red eyes.**

 **Money time! Using conversion rates as of 12/1/2015, 20K yen is equivalent to $162.47. The yen has kinda tanked; when I was a kid and visited Japan, it was pretty much 100 yen = 1 dollar. Now it's 123 yen to the dollar.**

 **Drug time! Succinylcholine is a very powerful muscle relaxant; it's used very consistently when a patient needs to be anesthetized because it works quickly, relaxes the muscles entirely, and wears off quickly (it's got the fastest onset and the shortest duration). In other words, it's more or less the best anesthetic we have at the moment - other drugs are measured by how close they get to succinylcholine's effectiveness. It's so good that the WHO (World Health Organization) has it on their List of Essential Medicines, a list of essential drugs for a basic health-care system. Glancing over the list - holy hell that's a lot of words that have 'Y' in their names - Ibuprofen and morphine are on there too, and everybody knows what those two do. I also talked to my doctor friend (whom I talk to whenever I need to ask about wounds and stuff like that. She's starting to wonder about me, especially now - I've already asked her how quickly a human will bleed out from a massive chest wound, and now I'm asking about how long it would take to cause a heart attack via overdose) about Succinylcholine and she says that it would actually take several hours for the heart attack to kick in. I think we're just going to chalk this one up to Fantasy Drugs, hm?**

 **Anyway, that wraps up the Phantom Bullet arc! Wow, that was a long one… Over 100k words. I might hit 200k by the end of the story, which would be neat. Hm… As for thoughts on this half, I wasn't a huge fan of this arc, to be entirely honest. I think it's a necessary one, because Sinon's a good foil for Kirito and the others (when she's present, argh! Such an amazing character and she only shows up for this arc and Calibur!) and because it sets up some other plot threads that get resolved fairly well; however, the entirety of one chapter took place in a cave, just the people talking. And I hate writing talking heads, because that's boring and not fun at all. Still, we got through it, and now one of the snarkier characters is in the group – and imagine how much fun I can have with that.**

 **Many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.**

* * *

 **(Canon) Omake:** Musketeer X's PM

I had just logged into my account to make sure the transfer wasn't going to break anything when I noticed a small blinking icon; tapping it, I was treated to a rather familiar screen with a rather familiar name on there. 'PM from Musketeer X'. I groaned faintly before tapping the message gingerly, like it was going to bite me.

'Yo, Rythin, first off congrats on winning. That was actually pretty cool to watch at the end. Even if you didn't actually do anything useful except talk a guy to death then stab him in the eye after your girlfriend cut him in half. Shame we didn't get our rematch, but there's always the next BoB, so you better show up so I can kick your ass.

Seriously, though, good job on winning. Ya earned it.'

I just grinned and closed the message. Musketeer X was similar in outlook as Sinon; the important thing to them was living and playing by their code, and apparently her code meant that I was someone to be respected, someone to be offered cautious camaraderie.

Smirking, I sent a reply back.

Musketeer X blinked in surprise as her inbox pinged, letting her know she had a message. She squeezed off a quick burst at the target down the range, nodding in satisfaction at the tight clustering of bullets before opening up the message to read it.

'You'll never see me coming.'

She laughed, ignoring the looks she was getting. _The same thing he said last time. Damn but that guy has confidence. Still, I saw him move when he was fighting against Sterben, so maybe there's something to his bragging after all._ She grinned and aimed her rifle again, lining up her next burst. _I'll be seeing you at the other end of this scope, Rythin._


	13. Debrief and Relax

**Chapter 13: Debrief and Relax**

* * *

 **December 24** **th** **, 2025**

I got the message from her on Christmas Eve: paraphrased, it was 'I've gotten the hang of ALO'.

Needless to say, after I passed on the message to Argo, I was thrilled Sinon had decided to join the world of the Fae; I had... plans for that event. Not that I couldn't have changed my projections around if she hadn't joined up, it was simply that everything worked out better if she did. Kirito got his friend, all the others got another person to talk to, and I got another member of Trinity.

Well, hopefully.

Fortunately, I was already logged in to Alfheim; Sinon's message mentioned she had decided on a bow and arrow build, and that she had created - or converted, I'm not really entirely sure which - her avatar a week ago, and I wanted to be able to greet her when she arrived now that she was joining us for real. "I'm heading out," I said, stretching and standing up from the surprisingly comfortable chair in Kirito and Asuna's rental home. We were getting close to the 22nd Floor, and once we cleared that I'd have my favorite couch back. I know I'd only ever sat on the thing twice but it was just so comfortable that I had been spoiled for everything else. I blame Kirito, since it's always his fault.

Argo looked up from where she was talking logistics with Asuna, and gave me a smile. "Catching the wayward wanderer?" she asked.

I just shrugged. "I figure it'd be easier to help her find her way here if at least one of us was there to greet her, and Kirito's a bit... preoccupied at the moment." He was currently enjoying Asuna's lap, and by the looks of things they weren't going anywhere any time soon. I'm pretty sure my friend was still shaken up by his brush with death - to say nothing of how livid Asuna and Sugu were when they found out what had almost happened - and he was sticking close to the people he loved. Hiding a grin, I turned and made my way out onto the balcony, where I could summon my wings and take off with ease and without disturbing the other occupants of the room.

As I stood on the balcony, sending a quick message to Alicia Rue - along the lines of 'Hey, one of my friends should be in your city, make sure she's ready to go pretty please?' though with about fifty percent more being coy about it - I felt a small weight settle onto my shoulder. "Where are you going, Dad?" Din asked, his voice still a little stilted.

I glanced at him. "Another one of our friends joined Alfheim very recently, and I'm going to pick her up." Din... Din was essentially my and Argo's surrogate child, much like Yui was to Asuna and Kirito, and in the same way. He was an AI based on Yui's source code and designed for research and information gathering purposes. At least, that's how I had described him to Kikuoka when I was begging for help getting Din into the game. In reality, he was my little gift to Argo; I'd seen her smile wistfully whenever Asuna and Yui interacted. Not to say that Din didn't help me out when I needed it, of course; he was still designed for information manipulation, and I was grateful for his help. Checking the net for my name being used was going to be so much easier now. But I wasn't going to be a jerk about it; most of the time, unless things were urgent I'd still do my searching myself. Didn't want to be breaking any child-labor laws, naturally. Because that's totally what I need to worry about in regards to having created an AI that then imprinted on me and Argo.

Maybe I should have been a little more thorough in examining Yui's code. Not that I minded, really, since to be entirely fair Din was adorable.

Din frowned in thought. "...Sinon. All other known comrades have register dates more than six months previously."

"Got it in one, kid," I said absently. "Now hang on, I'm going to be breaking the speed limit a bit."

Din blinked and frowned, though he did shift around until he was nestled in one of the straps of my jacket. "Alfheim does not have a speed limit."

"Figure of speech. Means I'm gonna go really fast!" Saying that, I summoned my golden wings and took off into the air with a burst of speed, orienting myself to the west and then streaking towards the sea I could see in the distance. It had been a while since I had been back to Freelia, and I was looking forward to it. It was always nice and warm there, in a way that didn't make me feel too hot. Not like the Salamander's desert. Fuck that place. Mortimer paid well, but good gods it was sweltering there. How Klein could stand it I had no idea. "Din, mind doing me a favor? Keep an eye out on my private message inbox for a message from Alicia Rue."

"Alright," Din said. "Alicia Rue, the current Lord of the Cait Sith race." He continued muttering things under his breath, probably doing the same thing he did when he met us - listing off the race, affiliations, any nicknames, stuff like that. I didn't really stop him from doing so, instead choosing to focus on how I was going to convince Sinon to join Trinity. She said she was going for a long-range build - which was why, I assumed, she had joined as a Cait Sith, because they had the best eyesight among the races. In here, I could see better than I could with my glasses in the real world, so knowing Sinon she'd immediately choose this without even thinking about the other races. Focused on her goals, that one was. But to be fair, her goals were usually along the same lines as mine, so that's useful.

How best to go about convincing Sinon to join up with Trinity? I really did want her to join, mainly because if her actions in GGO were to be converted to this one, she'd be a devastating long-range sniper. Hm... Perhaps I should point out how her skills needed to be utilized? If I vaguely remember what she said while in that cave correctly, she used to roll with a gang of player killers in that game. Though, since that game was almost entirely player killing, I can't really say she'd enjoy some jobs in Alfheim. Then again, I think she got her sniper rifle from killing a monster, so who knows. So, discuss how her skills could be used... Maybe talk about how it's more effective to work in a group than as a lone wolf? Then again, she might just be willing to join up because of Kirito. I grinned at the thought.

"Dad?" I made a sound of acknowledgement and Din continued, "You have received a message from Alicia Rue. Would you like me to read it?"

"Please, kid. Thanks."

He paused and then nodded. "She wrote, 'Your cute little girlfriend showed up. How do you get to know these people anyway? Anyway, I'm gonna treat her to a meal at the inn. You're good for the money, so I'm putting it on your tab. Later!"

I sighed, but my lips twitched up at her flippancy. "Alicia..." I muttered. The arrogance of demanding _I_ pay for her – no. Bad thoughts. The energetic Lord was probably my favorite out of all of them; I had only really met four or five of them personally, and I'd killed one of them. Tends to make for a relatively strained relationship, even if I was only doing my job. Still, Mortimer didn't hold a grudge and I had ended up working for him on the next job against the Undines. But yeah, Pallas - the Imp Lord - was a bit too dreamy for my liking, with her head in the clouds half the time, and Sakuya was polite but her social mask just put me on edge. Alicia was probably the only one that was open about who she was and tolerable, and I appreciated that. So, I usually ended up giving her the edge in any competitive bids, unless the other person's amount was really that much greater. Ah well. "Thanks, Din."

"You are welcome."

I accelerated, speeding through the air like a knife - or, I thought with a snort, an arrow released from a bow. Heh. Would that be considered a pun? It has two meanings, really, one is the actual metaphor and the other is a reference to Sinon and her weapon of choice. Stupid rules of grammar-based jokes. If I'm recalling right, a pun is defined as wordplay with two or meanings, so I guess it would count. Innuendo is the one where one of the meanings is sexual, like the phrase 'erect the tower'. ...Aaaand, there goes my train of thought to a screeching halt. Good. Let's just get on the mental NOPE train to Fuckthatshitville. I sighed; damn, I wish I could have my music playing here. It would make flying much more enjoyable, if only because my mind would have something to do other than go to terrible, terrible places.

Soon enough, though it was far too late for my mental health - heh, what mental health? - the large castle of the Cait Sith rose in the distance, and I angled my course slightly to make straight for it. I could make a flashy entrance, or I could just slip in quietly. Let's go with door number two, if only because there's a goat behind number one, a goat named 'People looking at me'. I hate crowds. Landing lightly in the main gates of the town, I looked around and checked the time. Alicia had sent me the message... fifteen minutes ago, and Sinon was definitely smart, so there was a high likelihood she was already finished up her shopping and enjoying a meal with Alicia. So, we should check out the nearby taverns, since that's where Alicia would probably take Sinon.

Sure enough, I saw the little Lord sitting at a table in the third inn I had checked; with her was another Cait Sith with their back to me. Blue hair coupled with a green coat told me that this was Sinon. Sure enough, when Alicia grinned that little cat-like smile of her and waved and the other Cait Sith turned around, it was Sinon. Immediately, she sighed. "Great. Of course you have to be the one to come pick me up."

"Don't be like that, Sinon," I said, slumping into the chair beside her. "Kirito's busy, so you have to wait to see him."

"I do not want to -"

I waved away her sputtered denial. "How much do you think I owe you, Alicia?" I asked carefully. When Alicia grinned widely and quoted a number, I winced and glared at Sinon. That Lord could sure spend money as long as it wasn't hers. "This is your fault, you know," I grumbled to her while pulling out the required coins and sliding them over to Alicia.

"Thanks, Rythin!" Alicia purred, putting the money into her account. "Later, then. I'll let you know if there's any jobs for you soon, okay?"

I nodded. "See you, Alicia." I looked back to see Sinon watching me with a raised eyebrow. "What?"

"I still find it weird that she's the ruler of this place," Sinon said. "She's so... so..."

"Energetic?" I offered. "Cheerful? Ditzy? Sexy?" Sinon was going to say something, but my last addition clearly derailed her train of thought. "What can I say, the cat ears do it for me." My grin sharpened into a smirk and I leaned forward conspiratorially. "Speaking of the cat parts, want to grab a room upstairs and find out how sensitive they are?"

Instantly, Sinon had a dagger unsheathed and pointed at my eye. "You're a perfect example of why I don't like men."

I just laughed and leaned back, nudging the blade away from my eye casually. "Oh, relax, Sinon," I said with a chuckle, "it means nothing. Now, c'mon. The others are waiting for you."

Sinon had been thorough in her grounding of the basic mechanics; she'd already figured out how to take off without the flight controller, so that part was easy. A small part of me was hoping that she had conveniently forgotten to figure out how to land, if only to watch her crash, but Sinon seemed confident enough in the air - for a beginner, anyway - that I was probably going to be disappointed. Since she just wasn't as fast as I was, we took it slow; that did give me a little bit to actually check out her appearance fully. Her hairstyle seemed to be the same as it was in GGO, though her bangs were tied with black ribbons rather than the metal clips. As for her equipment, she had the initial dagger sheathed on her hip, and most of the rest of her equipment was regular store-bought trash. Seems she went for the black choker; mine was a deep red, and I think Silica's was built into her dark shirt, or at least under it. Her tail and cat ears were the same color as her hair, the same shade of blue her previous avatar had been, and I grinned. Sinon glanced over at me as I started doing aerial acrobatics, bored slightly. "What are you doing?"

"Entertaining myself," I said with a shrug. Din was still clinging to my shoulder, so I couldn't do anything too exciting, but I was still able to do a bit of dancing through the sky.

"Hey, Rythin?" Sinon asked carefully when I stopped moving around and started flying next to her again. "...What's that, riding on your shoulder?"

I grinned and nudged Din. "Not what, but who. This is Din. Say hi, Din."

"Hello, Aunt Sinon," he said obediently.

Sinon blinked. "Aunt?" She gave me a close look. "Wait, what?"

"Din here is an AI, really," I said casually. "But, he imprinted on me and Argo, so... Yeah." I grinned slightly. "Hooray for being parents, I guess."

Sinon clearly wanted to say something, but then something in her head switched off and she just shook her head. Good survival instincts, that one. "I can see why you like this game so much," she said, looking around at the scenery passing under us. We were over the forest at the moment, though we were closing in on the mountain range. After that, a quick brush with hypothermia and we were only five minutes from Yggdrasil.

"It's not just the environment or the flying," I said absently. "It's... I don't know. This place has a lot of memories for all of us, and... I guess it feels a little bit like home."

"Home..." Sinon murmured.

I shook my head and grinned. "Don't read too much into it, Sinon. We're all a bunch of sword-obsessed idiots, so just get used to it."

"I've been meaning to ask about that, actually," she said, and I had a feeling this next conversation was going to be equal parts terrifying and entertaining. Entertaining because it's Sinon and she's surprisingly funny when I'm teasing her, and terrifying because holy fuck she's gonna want a bow. I was honestly surprised she hadn't managed to find one yet. "How exactly does the fighting work here?" She shrugged. "In terms of the projectile weapons. I didn't manage to find a bow in Freelia."

"It's not as simple as it was in GGO," I said, and didn't miss the small quirk of her lips when I called GGO's combat simple. "Um… I don't really know, actually. I've only ever used throwing knives, so the bow skills are more or less a mystery to me. I know they have some spells attached to them, so I'll get Leafa to cover that once you actually have a bow. Seriously, ask Kirito and Leafa for help. I'm pretty sure Kirito's got the combat manual memorized by now." And if that fails, ask Argo because she'll know it.

"I should have known," Sinon said with a sigh. "I'll figure it out somehow. And you said something about someone called Leafa?"

I frowned. "I don't think you've met Kirito's family, have you?" Sinon shook her head. "Leafa is Kirito's sister." Well, cousin, but Sinon didn't need to know that. Besides, better to keep the family tree as uncomplicated as possible. "She's basically the best at magic in the group, since she's played ALO longer than any of us have."

"Is she... I mean, was she... with you all?"

"In Aincrad?" I shook my head. "No, it was just Kirito. The rest of our friends, though, yeah, they were all in Aincrad. I'm pretty sure everyone's logging in tonight so we can wish each other Merry Christmas and then go kill a boss, so it'll be a good time to introduce you to everyone." I snickered. "Hope you like large groups of very excitable people." Sinon shuddered slightly.

"Dad, there is a Red Wyvern in our path ahead," Din reported.

...Oh, fuck me. Red Wyverns were a pain in the ass, if only because I fucking hate the 'being on fire' status effect. Flame was a pain, especially without Asuna to put me out. That being said, time to show off a bit. "Sinon, want to watch a fight? There's a Red Wyvern up ahead, and those things drop some pretty nice goods. Might be useful to sell."

Sinon shrugged. "I can't help much, though. All I have is this dagger." She gave the sheath on her hip a disdainful pat.

"Eh, I can handle it. Just sit back and watch." Cracking my knuckles, I drew the Moonblade and nodded to Din. "Din, mind hopping off for a bit? I don't want you to get hurt."

"Okay, Dad," he said, sprouting his wings and hovering in the air beside Sinon. Sinon looked over curiously and held out her hand, and he settled down, sitting on her open palm cross-legged. "The Red Wyvern seems to have noticed us and is approaching quickly."

I grinned. "Good, I still have some time." Closing my eyes, I pulled up one of the simple Flame Resist spells I had memorized; it wouldn't do much, just up my resistance a little bit, but some was better than none and my magic was useless otherwise. After chanting and seeing the words appear around me, I snapped and the magic took effect, a shimmering haze of heat surrounding me. I triggered Future Step and felt calm wash over me as the world's colors faded, and then turned to Sinon and Din. "Sit back and enjoy the show, please." She started slightly at the red color of my eyes, and I smirked. "I'll explain after the monster is dead."

The sun was shining, birds were singing, the sky was blue, and a dragon was trying to kill me. Ah, there really wasn't any place like home.

A loud roar signaled the end of the talking times, and I flew forward, arms crossed, until I could see the wyvern flying towards me. It had taken a lot of practice to make my flight look like hovering, but I could pull it off convincingly. From behind me, I could hear Sinon snort and mutter, "Show-off," and I fought to keep a grin from stretching across my face. Now, Red Wyvern... I need to remember its patterns... Got it. It'll open with -

A large red swath blazed through my sight and I was already moving, rocketing to the side and clearing the patch of red just before a large fireball appeared from seemingly nowhere and exploded into a blazing sun centered on where I had been hovering before moving. Sinon gasped in shock, but I was already moving; the Red Wyvern's Nova attack only worked once, when they were approaching, and it had just wasted it. Still, that was its most dangerous attack, and why they were so hard to take down - most people had to just tank the attack or keep moving constantly and hope they dodged it, and the range on the attack was pretty damn big. Either way, I dodged it and now it was time to dance!

With a screech, the Red Wyvern swooped in, diving from above with its claws extended; I spun effortlessly and raked the Moonblade across its ribs. The skittering feeling and sparks told me I hadn't managed to pierce its hard underbelly scales, but that was okay; I turned the momentum into force and tucked into a vicious heel strike, my boot slamming down on the monster's left wing. There was a crack and it hissed at me, its long neck reaching out to bite me. I deliberately let it clamp on my shoulder; my health was high enough that I could soak the damage, and besides I wanted to get in close. As I grappled with the monster, my free hand was plunging into my pocket and then helping pry open the monster's jaw to get it off of me. As the Wyvern's claws tried to rake at my stomach and I dodged, weaving in and out of the red lines, I forced its jaws apart before flying back and kicking it in the snout. The jaws snapped closed and I winced as a long shard of rock suddenly bloomed, spearing through its closed mouth. The stone throwing knife I had placed in there had done its job, and the Red Wyvern's screeches swiftly turned to pain as it tried to flee.

I wasn't having any of that, however; raising a hand, I focused and the words came back to me. "Þik halda nótt keðjur." I snapped, and the golden symbol of the Cait Sith appeared in front of me before shadowy chains burst from it and rocketed towards the Wyvern, wrapping themselves around it; the chains weren't actually real, but they would prevent the Wyvern from trying to flee and somehow getting away. Next, I drew two regular throwing knives and launched them at the struggling Wyvern; they tore two holes through the creature's wings, and the Wyvern started slowly gliding down, wings outstretched. With a feral grin I folded my own wings and plunged down, Dragontalons extended, and slammed into the Wyvern's back; as its wings crumpled from the weight and we started falling, I tore viciously with my claws at the creature's spine where the wings joined together. When I heard a crack, I grinned and grabbed my Moonblade before burying it up to the hilt in the revealed flesh. I took off and flew upwards, away from the writhing Red Wyvern; it kept trying to send spurts of flame at me, but with its wings damaged like that it couldn't aim at me so long as I stayed above it, and I was able to just hover in midair and let my Binding Shadows spell keep it from escaping while the poison did my dirty work. Eventually, the Red Wyvern went limp; after a second, its appearance shuddered and then shattered into the blue polygons.

As I rejoined Sinon and Din, nodding at the materials I had managed to get from the kill, I sheathed my Moonblade and spread my arms. "Well? What did you think?"

"I think you're a show-off," Sinon said, and I mimed taking a mortal blow to my heart.

"Your words, they wound me so," I gasped dramatically, and Sinon snorted slightly. "Either way, that's what combat in this game looks like, minus the Sword Skills. I rarely use those unless I'm fighting something without my knife." The Sword Skills were nice and all, but all I needed to do was nick - heh - them with the Moonblade and the poison would do the rest. When I was just brawling, though, using the Dragontalons? Yeah, I used Sword Skills to augment my style. The strength and speed boost was phenomenal, and I rarely lost my balance thanks to my training.

We resumed our travel to Yggdrasil, and I caught Sinon looking at me occasionally, Din still riding on her shoulder. It was almost adorable the way she had just gotten used to his presence that way; she'd just adore Yui, if she had taken to Din that quickly. "What was with your eyes, earlier?" she asked finally when I gave her a questioning look as we were passing through the mountains that separated Yggdrasil and the central area from the rest of the territories. "They were...red." Her eyes were shadowed slightly.

Ah. She's probably thinking about XaXa and how his whole thing in GGO was his glowing red eyes. Er. "If I stirred up bad memories..." She shook her head quickly. Good, I don't want her depressed and mopey for when she meets the others. "Do you remember, back in GGO, when I mentioned I had more experience than anyone using the defensive system?"

"Yeah, now that you mention it," she said. "That was... weird."

I triggered Future Step again and nodded. "This is my skill," I said. "Future Step."

"Future Step?" Sinon repeated, clearly confused.

I grinned slightly. "It allows me to see the path of anything the system assists. Spells, movements, Sword Skills, monsters... If the system helps it, I see it as a red shadow before the movement occurs." Of course, seeing wasn't always being able to dodge, but I'd gotten used to seeing things a half-step ahead and my reactions were moving accordingly. I was fighting where they would be, not where they were. Made for getting attacks in surprisingly easy if I just needed to put my dagger where they were guaranteed to run into it. "And in Aincrad, it was my Unique Skill."

Sinon nodded, thinking about it thoughtfully. Which seems redundant, because how can you not think thoughtfully, but it still makes sense because she was actually putting thought into her thinking and... Aaaand, it's no longer a word. "Interesting," she said finally. "How extensive is it? I mean, the bullet lines only worked if they were aimed at you, and snipers had their first shot hidden."

My lips cracked into a small smirk. "Future Step is far, _far_ more powerful than your bullet prediction lines. If it's assisted by the system, I see it."

"So that's how you dodged that fireball," she murmured, sounding like something had finally made sense. Then she smiled slightly, and I saw the image of the old, dangerous Sinon. Her eyes weren't as cold and brutal as that old Sinon, but that small smirk? It sent a shiver of excitement down my spine. She would be fun to fight, just like Kirito and Asuna.

Before long we arrived at Kirito and Asuna's apartment, and I landed on the balcony, Sinon landing on the ground lightly a second later. "Ready?" I asked her, and she swallowed before nodding silently. "Right, then." I threw the door open and walked in, and immediately everyone's eyes were on me. I did a quick head count and nodded; we had everyone except Agil, and that was because he was working in his bar in the real world. He'd join us later, though, since he was closing early. Klein even had Christmas week off - despite his whining and moaning about it, though - so he was lounging at the bar. With a grand gesture I smirked and stepped to the side, gesturing to Sinon.

She stepped forward and looked around at the others; Kirito, Asuna, Liz, and Argo - the ones she had met already - were grinning, while the others were smiling widely. "Hello," she said, nodding.

Kirito stood up and moved over beside her, while I immediately took his seat, grinning at his flat glare. "This is Sinon," he said to Leafa, Silica, and Klein. "Third champion of Gun Gale Online, and a badass sniper."

"Also someone that doesn't know how to buckle a bike helmet," I added casually. "So, Sinon, how about those rumors at school?"

"I hate you," she spat, her tail bristling. A few spots of red were on her cheeks, and I snickered; the rumors must have been _fun_ to deal with. "Asshole."

The little snark-versus-snark had broken the ice, and she seemed a lot more relaxed. "Sinon, this is Silica, Klein, and Leafa," Kirito said, pointing to each of them in turn. "I know Klein looks like a thug -"

"Oi!" Klein interrupted, looking injured.

"- but he's a pretty good guy. Everyone here's great," Kirito continued, "so don't hesitate to ask them if you need advice or help."

Sinon blinked. "Um, Rythin said something about asking you and Leafa for help with Sword Skills and magic?"

Kirito and Leafa looked at each other before nodding. "Sure thing, Sinon," Leafa said. "Kazuto and I can help you out." Sinon blinked, looking at Kirito for a second before she let out a small 'ah!' in comprehension and grinned at the siblings. I did warn her about that.

With those four - Asuna was joining them - going out, the people in the room started shifting around. Din and Argo were speaking quietly, no doubt planning the surprise we had prepared, while Silica, Yui, and Pina were playing around on one side of the room. Klein was lazing about, drinking something probably alcoholic, and... "Liz, can I speak with you for a sec?" I asked, waving our blacksmith friend over.

"Whatcha need?" she asked, coming over and sitting down on the couch next to me. Unperturbed, I just moved my legs and laid them over her lap, getting me an unimpressed look that I just grinned in response to.

Sinon had said she wanted a bow, so I was going to get her one. Besides, that would have her grateful and leave her a little more open to joining Trinity. A taste of what I could give her, and she'd want more. A bit manipulative, yes, but not excessively so; the kind of manipulation anyone did when extending a job offer. Nothing shady about it in the slightest. "Sinon needs a bow, and so I figured I'd ask you to make one."

Lisbeth grinned. "Charity work, Rythin? How strange."

"Hardly," I snorted. "She's paying for everything once she gets a cash flow. I'm merely extending a loan, interest-free. The same I'd do for anyone known to me in this game."

"Uh huh." Somehow, she didn't seem convinced, if the smug grin stretching across her grin was any indication.

...Fine. "I also might have ulterior motives in regards to Trinity," I admitted.

"I knew it!" she exclaimed, pointing at me. "Yes! Silica owes me fifty Yrd now." So glad I could help you get richer. Also, Silica should probably have not made that bet.

"Whatever," I said, waving a hand. "Can you make the bow and arrows or not?"

Lisbeth grinned and leaned back. "Who do you think I am? Gimme the materials, and I'll get it done in thirty minutes."

I smirked. "Make it twenty and you have a bonus waiting for you."

"I love a challenge." Though Liz and I were always jokingly at each other's throat verbally, we had a very healthy respect for the other's skills. I made sure to always pay her in proportion to the quality of her work, and she ensured that my armor and weapons wouldn't fail me. It was a mutually beneficial relationship, and I wouldn't have it any other way. I transferred the materials she requested over to her after pulling them from my storage, and she took off for her smith shop. I glanced at the time and leaned back, pulling out the book I had been reading and flipping to the page I had been halfway through reading. Maggie Holt really was quite the author, and I did enjoy her works. Still, I was getting the feeling that _Judgment_ was going to end very poorly for Mr. Barber John. Still, he did have an angel on his side, so perhaps he would still emerge victorious. Though, I did find myself rooting for the pair of monsters opposing him; the tree boggart and the mermaid had very good chemistry together. No, I didn't have the habit of rooting for the villain, shut up stupid brain.

Fifteen minutes after I resumed reading, there was a loud and intrusive cough somewhere to my right. I lowered my book to see Lisbeth standing there, holding a bow and quiver in her hands. "Why, Lisbeth," I said calmly, "you should probably take something for that cough of yours. It's almost as annoying as your actual voice."

"Now imagine how I feel," she sighed theatrically, "having to listen to you day in and out."

"Bite me, Liz."

She grinned. "Any place in particular, or should I just guess?"

I rolled my eyes and swiped open my menu before raising an eyebrow at my friend. "How much do I owe you?"

"Well, it was a rush job, so... let's say ten thousand and we're even." I grimaced slightly, but I paid for quality. After her account swelled and mine shrank - though I still had plenty of money thanks to the original glitch and transfer of almost two million Yrd - Liz nodded and handed me the bow, Moonsilver Bow according to the information on it, and the quiver. I just set it down next to me and went back to my book. The weight on the couch told Liz had sat down as well, and I glanced at her to see her staring at the ceiling with a sigh. "It's been a year, hasn't it," she sighed.

"Since Aincrad?" I shook my head. "For Kirito and Asuna, they only truly escaped when Asuna woke up at the end of January."

Liz shrugged. "Things are just going by so fast. I mean, you and Argo are graduating at the end of March, and then it's only a year left before me and Asuna..."

"You miss the timelessness of Aincrad?"

"A little, I guess."

I closed my book and sat up, patting her on the shoulder gently. "Even if we're apart," I told her softly, "we'll all still stay friends. No matter what."

She sighed, and then shook her head before giving me a smirk. "What's this?" she said, and her voice was back to normal. Forcing herself to act cheerful? I'll ask Yui to keep an eye on her. "Rythin, being nice to someone? Hell froze over sometime recently, looks like."

"Screw you, Liz," I groaned, leaning back down and deliberately putting my feet in her lap again. "It's pity for the weak, nothing more."

Liz was going to fire back with something, I knew it, when I felt a chill run down my spine - I knew Liz felt it too because she shuddered. We looked up sheepishly to see Asuna standing there, and we ducked our heads and apologized quickly before she ratcheted up the 'oh fuck scary' stare she was giving us. As the returning four filled the room, the level of light chatter rose, and I saw Lisbeth smiling cheerfully. Good, she was back in her element, and hopefully that brief moment of... whatever it was that she showed me was just that, brief. Still, going to ask Yui later to keep a close eye on Liz, especially after I leave and can't do it myself.

"Hey, hey, hey!" Argo said, raising her voice above the din - pun not exactly intended, since Din was hovering above her - to make sure she would be heard. "Settle down, get a good seat, and grab some popcorn! This is my and Ry's Christmas present to all of you, so enjoy this little home video we cooked up!" I grinned happily; this was going to be fantastic.

People shifted around, getting their seats, and Sinon was looking around for a place to sit when I grinned. "Sinon, I think Kirito's lap is open, what about there?" I blinked at her response; her invective-filled rant was even more impressive when the sharp Cait Sith teeth were taken into account. Even so, she settled down relatively near Kirito, and I smothered a delighted cackle. See, the video we had prepared? 'Kiriko's Greatest Hits'. I'm not sure who was going to be more embarrassed, Kirito or Sinon, but it was going to be fantastic. We had edited it into the style of something almost like a documentary, highlighting every second that Kirito's very pretty avatar was the star of the spotlight. While the others were watching with expressions of stunned silence, mortal embarrassment, and in Silica's case almost jealousy, I had only one comment for Argo. "Smooth jazz for the cave scene _and_ a rose filter? Nice touch."

"I try," she replied, snickering at the way Sinon and Kirito had suddenly teleported to opposite sides of the room. Even Leafa was struggling to hold back a laugh at the image on the screen, while Klein and Liz had given up the fight a long time ago and were well on their way to laughing themselves sick. Poor Asuna, meanwhile, was watching with a mixture of resigned acceptance and stunned horror.

Eh, fuck it. I finally let my chuckles get the better of me and found that I couldn't stop until the video ended with Kirito exploding again with that stupid, stupid grenade that he somehow managed to fall for. I still couldn't figure out how he couldn't see that coming, even after Sinon very calmly told him what it was and what she was about to do. Idiot. Still, it meant I got to be one of the grand champions, and the large sniper rifle - modeled after Sinon's, even - that was currently sitting on one of my shelves was a testament to my victory. I got my souvenir for this case, hooray for me. "I don't understand why everyone had such a strange reaction to Daddy's avatar," Yui said once our home movie had finished. "It was very pretty! Almost as beautiful as Mommy's!"

Kirito's face went bright red, and Asuna's blush was almost as bad – not quite, because she was still laughing slightly, but it was getting there. On the other hand, Argo, Sinon, and I were howling with laughter, tears streaming down our eyes. The others were all laughing pretty hard too, with Leafa not able to look at her brother without doubling over and clutching at her stomach; Liz and Silica were all but slumped against each other, and Klein was pounding on the bar, whimpering something about needing to breathe. Oh, Yui, you are a _priceless_ treasure. Never change, sweetheart.

After everyone had settled down, I grabbed the Moonsilver Bow and quiver and handed them to Sinon. "Nine thousand for both," I told her when she asked how much she owed me. "I'm not making you pay for the extra since I'm the one that asked Liz to rush, but the rest you will have to pay."

"Of course," Sinon said easily. "Thank you, Liz." Oh, sure, don't thank me even though I'm covering a tenth of the cost for you. Whatever.

I started walking toward the window, then turned and raised an eyebrow. "Want to get used to it?" I offered. Sinon shrugged and joined me, Argo trailing after her a second later.

I glanced at my girlfriend curiously, and she snickered. "I want to see how this plays out," she said with a smug smile. "Besides, Sinononon is an unknown variable, I want to learn more." There's... There's so many things wrong with that sentence that I'm just going to nod and just ignore it entirely. So I nodded and grinned and just sighed when Sinon gave me a glance that was half confused and half amused. I adored Argo, I always would, but sometimes she was a little bit of a handful, especially when she got a new piece of information between her teeth. "So many questions!" she sang, giving me a glance out of the corner of her eye. Ah, so she was playing it up to get Sinon used to all of us. Well, that was nice enough.

"Well, let's be about it," I muttered, summoning my wings and soaring into the sky. Sinon followed a second later, Argo just behind her. I led outside the boundaries of town to a large open plateau - the same one where Alicia and Sakuya had been attacked by the Salamanders in January, actually - and landed lightly, a bit of dust rising from the impact. Argo landed lightly, her purple wings folding back into her back as she adjusted her brown cloak. I'd spotted her examining Sinon's clothing closely; maybe she was thinking about changing color styles? Perhaps. Sinon landed a little less gracefully, staggering a few steps before gathering herself, her golden dragon-like wings taking a few seconds to disappear. Ah, she'd get used to the flight mechanics soon enough; the feeling of stretching those invisible muscles in the back could take some getting used to, but Sinon had already proven she was quick on her feet, given the fact that she was already responding to my light jabs correctly. "So, Sinon, ready to get some live practice in?"

She stumbled slightly, fidgeting with her new bow awkwardly. Then again, she was used to carrying her Hecate, so it shouldn't be too long until she's used to it. "You... want me to shoot you?" Argo snickered at her incredulous tone.

"I want you to try," I corrected, smirking slightly. "I very much doubt you will."

Something hardened in her eyes, and my smirk widened slightly. "We'll see," she said, drawing her new bow. "There's a reason I was the best sniper in GGO." And I was fighting on a very massive handicap. Still, I'm glad her steel wasn't lost. It would have been a problem if my new prospective member to Trinity had lost her will to fight.

"Woah now," I said, raising my hands and backing away. "Let's set some rules. First person to get struck, loses. It's a form of duel we have that the system enforces. No killing. Second, we start at a good distance to make sure neither of us has the advantage until we close. Third, wings are allowed but no magic or flying." If I'd allowed either of those, it would be too easy for me, and we both knew it. "Rules sound fair?"

"I've got no problem with it," she said.

"Right, then," Argo said, clapping, "while you two are playing, Din and I will be watching."

"Good luck, Dad," Din said from his position on Argo's shoulder. I just waved and grinned at them before summoning my wings to cross the distance faster. Once Sinon and I were a good distance away, I turned and opened my menu. Sinon should have been a blur in the distance, but thanks to my nice amazing Cait Sith eyes I could see her, waiting patiently with arms folded. Argo was sitting off to the side, typing swiftly into a screen of notes while apparently speaking to Din, who was listening with apparently rapt attention.

Now, time to focus. I sent the duel request to Sinon, and saw her receive it; after a second, she pressed the accept button and I leaned back, listening to the timer begin to tick down. I missed that sound, really. It brought back memories of Kirito and I dueling, of me practicing against Asuna while trying to keep up against her speed, of that one time I fought Asuna so I could have an extra day to figure out the trick to that one Field Boss. It reminded me of challenging Leafa and Lisbeth to a two-on-two, the two of them against me and Argo. Gods, that sound had so many memories... All of them violent, yes, but that was just part of the fun! And now... time to make a new memory. I opened my eyes and smirked as I settled down, feeling my pulse start to race. Yes... This was going to be a good one.

The instant the timer rang, my knife was out of its sheath and I was racing forward, trying to draw out her range. Sinon didn't really flinch, her nerves already hardened by her experience with GGO; so instead, I saw her draw back the string and aim. I smirked; her maximum range was only fifty meters, and I was at twice that, so I was safe. Still, better safe than sorry, and I triggered Future Step to keep myself safe. Sinon released, and I continued moving forward, ignoring the arrow. It would land far in front of me, and so I'd be perfectly - OH FUCK ME. I snapped my wings open and rocketed to the side in a relatively controlled tumble, and Sinon's arrow tore through the left side of my wings, passing through the translucent golden material without harming me. Still, that had been a half step from my heart, and if I hadn't moved I'd have taken her arrow to the chest. Crap, when did she find the time to get so good? She said she hadn't been able to practice with a bow in Freelia!

Sensing a sudden looming feeling of 'oh, I'm _so_ fucked' I scrambled to my feet and bolted to the side just before more arrows rained from the sky, embedding themselves in the ground where I had been standing, staring at her first arrow. I danced through the rain of very sharp things, sliding to the left and then smoothly transitioning into a cartwheel before dropping my left elbow to convert it into a roll instead. I needed to flow unpredictably or she'd be able to spot my patterns. Twist left, dodge roll to the right and jump forward. Bend _just_ so to the left to avoid the arrow, then snap head back. As I danced through the field of falling arrows, I was wondering something. How was she hitting so accurately? She had the eyes of a Cait Sith, so she could see me, but that shouldn't let her... She's not using the system assist.

Oh. ...Oh. That's... That's... That's a... Tch. Okay, I have no idea how in the hells to react to that. I breathed out and dove forward, several more arrows hitting the ground in behind me as I reached down to push off the ground lightly and spring forward again. I needed to get inside her range or I'd be a dead little kitty.

My tail bristling and my ears flat, I managed to reach the halfway point, and I grinned tightly. Now, I was in my element; I was in her fifty meter range, and the system would assist her arrows - allowing me to see where they would be. Suddenly, several red lines appeared in front of me, and I yelped; that was way more arrows than I expected. What the hells were Kirito and Leafa teaching her? Does she have like an unlimited supply of the damn things? And they're all clustered around my body, so dodging will be difficult. Well, if I can't dodge, I'd have to block. I swept my arm up, clenching my fist; with a crash, an arrow struck my Diamond Dragontalons and shattered against the gem-reinforced armor. The impact was still tremendous, however, and I rocked back before slipping to the side and punching out. My fist met another arrow that was approaching my eye, and the wooden projectile lost the war, shattering into a spray of splinters. I felt a little bad about wasting the arrows, but it wasn't exactly like I had a choice. I winced as one of the splinters nicked my cheek, but it was a negligible amount of damage, and I was a reckless fighter anyway. Hissing under my breath, as any proper Cait Sith did when fighting, I trusted my Future Step-assisted instincts and straightened. My reflexes weren't as good as Kirito's, and I wasn't as fast as Asuna, but I could see the world a half-second before they did. All I had to do was reach out and...

I snatched an arrow mid-flight, grinning victoriously. I knew it was worth it to practice against those weak Kobold Archers in the Sylph forest, even if I did look like a pincushion the first few days. And weeks. But I could catch arrows now, and I saw Sinon's eyes widen just a fraction as her fingers fumbled.

That gave me the opening, and I took it; with the steady stream of arrows opening just a tiny hole, I was able to draw a knife and toss it towards that hole. The earth-based knife expanded in midair, becoming a giant stone spike that drilled towards Sinon. Now, my opponent was no fool; her ears flat, she dove to the side to avoid the gigantic projectile that was hurtling toward her. Despite her quick recovery - she had already started firing arrows again while rising from a prone position - I had used that gap to close the distance, and I was in melee range before she do anything to stop me. With a single punch, I ended the duel, raking my Dragontalons across her arm.

"Good fight," she muttered, clutching her wounded arm.

"That was..." I laughed breathlessly. "That was amazing. You're exactly what I expected, Sinon. Good. Now I feel comfortable offering this to you."

Sinon looked at me cautiously, her tail lashing suddenly. She'd learn to control that soon enough, though. "Offer me what?"

I nodded and offered her a slightly mocking courtly bow. "Why, I'm offering you a position with Trinity."

"Trinity?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Trinity - the informal name referring to a group of highly-skilled mercenaries led by Rythin," Din reported, and I felt him land on my shoulder lightly as Argo joined us. "Current members are Rythin, Kirito, and Asuna."

"So, what?" Sinon asked. "You run a merc group?" I smiled slightly and nodded, watching her. "And you want me? Why?"

"Well," I said, waving a hand at the battlefield littered with the spent arrows. "You did... that. On your first day using a bow, a week after converting to Alfheim. In addition, you were accurately shooting me from twice the expected range of your bow. Against you, mages would have no chance, if they even saw their deaths coming."

Sinon's eyes narrowed. "You mind explaining this a little bit more? Mark me down as tentatively interested."

Excellent. "Here's how Trinity works. We have a very relaxed contract in terms of things that need to be in there." I shrugged. "Pretty much the only things in there are a few clauses stipulating that Trinity members won't fight each other, the job is set when the contract is signed, stuff like that. Each individual member determines the exact nuances of their own contract of their own free will, since I'm too lazy to deal with it myself." I tapped my chest. "My personal contract basically sets up a silent auction between the two parties involved, and I go with the highest bidder - I don't know what Kirito or Asuna's contracts look like or how they work. If your contract is too specific, you won't get a job and you won't get money. And speaking of money, there's a base fee that you have to charge - at least ten thousand Yrd - but you can raise the minimum if you want. Trinity takes one percent of the overall fee - basically, just enough to keep the merc group together, but that's it."

"And why would I care?" Sinon asked. "Since... Well, since you run it, I'm sure Trinity has plenty of enemies. Why should I paint a target on my back?"

I smirked. "Because the money's good - better than you'd be getting as a lone wolf, anyway. Besides, the contracts really aren't that often, so most of the time we're just playing the game normally." My smirk widened. "Besides, there's another perk to it, too."

Argo leaned on my shoulder and ran a finger down my cat ears, and I shuddered slightly as electricity arced down my spine. Damn but those things were sensitive. "Did we mention Kirito's one of the members?" Sinon stiffened slightly, and she grinned. "Because he is."

Sinon frowned slightly, and then slowly grinned. "Know what, Rythin? It sounds like fun."

I grinned and laughed gleefully. "Excellent! Magnificent!" I clapped joyfully and then gave her a grin. "You've made the right choice, Sinon. Welcome aboard." Now, I need to update the Trinity thread with the new information and then sit back to let the players have a heart attack. Hm... "What time is it?"

"Almost midnight," Sinon replied after a second. Hm.

"Well..." Argo sighed, stretching slightly. "We should get back to the apartment. I think we were going to have a Christmas celebration, since a lot of us weren't available today and aren't going to be available tomorrow." All I knew was that I was spending the day with Argo, and that was going to be a fantastic gift in its own right. "C'mon, Sinon, Ry. Let's go."

When we returned, everyone had gathered. "You're just in time!" Silica said, smiling at us.

Everyone settled down, and a comfortable silence filled the air. "Well," Klein said, finally breaking the silence. "We did it, guys. Another Christmas."

"Yeah," Kirito said, resting his shoulder against Asuna. His girlfriend smiled and placed her hand on his, lacing her fingers with his. "A lot of stuff happened, didn't it?" That's right, they had a date earlier today, didn't they?

"If by a lot, you mean we saved Asuna, rode on a whale, and stopped a crazy mass murderer?" I asked. "Yeah. Yeah, a lot happened." Strange... It feels like just so much happened, but looking back at it not that much really happened. Still, things had been fun. We had been able to relax and enjoy our lives. Still... Liz was right. We were going to be forced to split up soon. And despite our best attempts, the relationships between me and the others would be tested. It's why long distance relationships don't work out that often.

But no. Tonight... Tonight, I'm with my friends. My _family_. And tomorrow will bring what it brings, there's nothing I can do about it. Instead, I'm just going to enjoy the night surrounded by the people I love and care for. The perfect Christmas present.

I yawned and stood up. "Alright, that's enough of the moping. Come, we have a boss fight to get to."

* * *

 **December 25** **th** **, 2025**

I knocked on the door and waited patiently. After a few seconds, there was the thud of racing footsteps and the door cracked open. "Nick!" Kana exclaimed, throwing the door open and throwing her arms around me. "Merry Christmas!" I leaned forward and booped her nose with mine, causing her to squeal and wrinkle her nose. "Your nose is cold."

"It's cold outside," I said. "Mind if I come in?"

She grinned and dragged me inside, shutting the door behind me while I took off my coat and boots. "Is Din awake?" she asked. "I've been meaning to ask you to give me a login, by the way."

"I'm awake, Mom." Din's voice came from my pocket and I pulled out my phone to show him standing in the field I had created for him and Yui. "Merry Christmas."

"To you too, Din," my girlfriend said, beaming. "Oh, and say hi to Yui for us, okay?"

"Hi, Aunt Kana!" The screen split in half, and Yui appeared on the bottom half, while Din seemed almost disgruntled by her sudden appearance. "Merry Christmas!"

"Hey, kiddo," I said, grinning. "Didn't know you were listening in."

Yui pouted slightly. "Daddy is talking with Aunt Sugu, and Mommy is having a meal with her family."

"I'm sure they're going to spend time with you tonight," Kana said soothingly. "After all, they'd want to enjoy time with you together, right? And they can't do that at the moment."

"Okay..." Yui perked up suddenly. "Hey, Din, wanna play?"

"Alright," Din replied. After waving and saying goodbye, the two closed their connections, and I sighed, shaking my head. It's a good thing he's spending time with Yui; as they talk, his speech patterns should become a little more fluid and he should become more animated. I remember how Yui was when Asuna and Kirito met her; even though she'd lost her memories, she was happy and cheerful as could be. Then again, she had existed for almost two years at that point, so... Time will tell, I guess.

But enough about that, I have something to give my beautiful girlfriend. "I do come bringing presents," I said casually, pulling a small wrapped package out of my coat pocket. "For you, if you can figure out what's inside," I told Kana, and smiled when her eyes lit up. I think it's more the mystery of what's inside, rather than actually getting a gift.

"Aw, Nick, you're the best," Kana cooed, her eyes not leaving the present. I had been sure to wrap it in a perfectly square box, so that the shape wouldn't have any clues to her. "Let's see... Clothes of some sort, definitely."

"What makes you say that?"

Kana smirked at me. "You really think I didn't notice you looking through my closet a few weeks ago? You had one of two reasons, and I'm reasonably sure you weren't trying to figure out which ones looked good on you."

"Dahling, you know pink is my color," I said with a flat expression and flatter voice. "So you think I was getting your size?"

"I never said anything about that," Kana said, giggling. "Looks like my hunch was right after all." Shit. I... can't believe I fell for that, actually. One of the oldest tricks in the book and I jumped right on it like it was a godsdamn bag of gold. "Hmm... So it's some clothes. And you wouldn't buy me underwear or something like that... And you don't have any fashion sense, so it's not anything like a shirt or skirt..." She snapped her fingers. "Some sort of coat or sweatshirt. And since I already own a few of those... A hoodie. I don't have one of those yet." She gave me a cat-like grin. "So how'd I do?"

I shook my head. "Catling, you're something else."

"Of course I am," Kana said with a smug grin. "Now give, we'll open it with the rest of the gifts."

"Rest of the -" I had been following Kana as she wandered through the house, and the tree they had put up was lit up brilliantly. Now, that wasn't what made me stop mid-sentence; no, the breaking point was when I saw the _amazing_ lunch she and her family had put together. I took a cautious sniff, and the smells were even better; my sense of taste was a bit... weird at times, and so I used smell more than anything. Part of the reason I disliked any sort of perfumes or body sprays; they messed with my smell.

"Hm?" Kana looked back, then over at the food just waiting to be devoured. "Oh, yeah. Mom and Dad like to put on a feast on Christmas. I helped make some of it, too!"

"Marry me," I whimpered. I tried to remember to breathe, and then when that just made things worse I tried to remember to unbreathe. Didn't that go in a rhythm or something? Like... Breathe, unbreathe. Breathe, unbreathe. I think they called it inhaling and exhaling or something?

"That was the plan, Nick," Kana said, laughing happily. "You look like you're hungry." She reached out and grabbed my hand, and the contact shocked me back into relative awareness.

There was a low laugh from the doorway, and I looked over - how had I let them into my threaten range without knowing who they oh right this is Kana's house, I don't have a threaten range here. It was Kana's father. "I guess we'll be eating first, then presents, if the look on Nick's face is any indication."

I shook myself and nodded. "If it wouldn't be a pain, sir. I think I could focus much better without..." I waved at the food. "...this delicious meal distracting me."

When we sat down to eat, it was only my immense self-control that stopped me from tearing into the food like a starving cat. That being said, it was absolutely delicious. Ham cooked to perfection and mashed potatoes with the butter just perfect and green beans with garlic and it was so delicious. I would probably have to watch my weight if and when I moved in with Kana sometime in the future, if only because if her cooking was this good, I don't think I'd be able to restrain myself.

When we were finished, it was present time; Kana had guessed correctly, but she still gave me a huge hug and a kiss on the cheek when she opened up the brown hoodie I had purchased her. It was more or less her old cloak from Aincrad and Alfheim; I'd had it specially made to resemble it as much as possible, while still looking like a normal hoodie to anyone that wouldn't know what it was supposed to be. It was a bit pricey, especially with the special requests, so it helped that I had a nice fat paycheck from Kikuoka. Kana had gotten me something as well; two somethings, in fact. The first was the first few books in a series I had been eyeing at the used bookstore with the cats; I had gone in after getting my paycheck, but they had disappeared. Looks like I knew where they went. As for the second, I was informed I wouldn't get the second gift until we logged into Alfheim. Which immediately piqued my interest; after all, it's not every day your girlfriend is giving you a gift in the virtual world. If I were anyone else, I'd probably be expecting sex or something. Hell, for all I know Asuna and Kirito are getting it on right now.

Heh heh... Heh...

...

...Fuck you, train of thought with no brakes. That's not an image I _ever_ want in my head again.

I had already obtained permission from the parent that I was going to be staying at Kana's that night - well, obtained permission being more 'I told her I was staying at Kana's and left the house' - and so after excusing ourselves from her parents we both went upstairs and got comfortable. Her bed was a little bit wider and softer than my own, so we both fit comfortably. That isn't to say we didn't normally snuggle a bit as we Dove in, just that it wasn't strictly necessary like it was in my bed. Eh, it was still nice. Something this intimate, just being near her and hugging her? Fine. I still had a problem with things more intimate than that, and Kana knew and gave me my space when I needed it. Regardless, it was warm, sitting next to her. The good kind of warm.

And gods damn but I'm being all mopey and melodramatic these past few days. Probably because it's taking longer than usual to come down from the... problem I had on the 14th. I don't remember how long it took for me to be normal again after Aincrad, the last time I felt like that, but it wasn't for a long while.

Kana was definitely helping, though. And everyone else. I felt... normal? Does anything about me count as normal? Eh, fuck it.

Kana told me to wait about ten minutes before I Dove in to join her, so I had some time to kill, and I spent it just poking around her room curiously. Her desk had the usual scattering of homework, notes on people and things she'd observed, and the army of notes reminding her to do things or to call someone. It's strange, really; in her persona as the all-knowing info broker, she had everything together so perfectly. And yet, in real life, Kana had all of this clutter to remind her what to do and when to do it. I smiled as my fingers brushed her notebook, tracing the small design on the front - but I didn't look. Privacy was still important, after all. With time still ticking away merrily, I looked around the room and my eyes fell on her closet. I had hoped to be able to get away with rummaging through her clothes to figure out what sizes she normally wore, but thinking back on it I had little to no hope of ever getting away with it. My mind, for whatever reason, started wandering... I hope she liked the hoodie. I needed a hoodie of some sort myself, actually. Maybe I could steal Kana's hoodie. Come to think of it, I wonder how it would look if I... I blinked as I realized I was wondering how it would look if I wore one of her less feminine shirts. Damn it, Kana, stop messing with my head. She'd been bringing that up in a joking manner ever since GGO, and it was apparently starting to get to me. Meh, whatever.

That whole disturbing train of thought had more or less killed any mood to explore her room, so I just sat down and got comfortable, nestling close to my girlfriend. "Thank you for everything, Kana," I whispered, glad she couldn't hear me. I had no problem thanking her, but it was always the flippant appreciation. I just couldn't show her how grateful I was when she was awake. That being said, I reached out and grabbed my AmuSphere and placed it over my head. "Link start!"

* * *

I told Nick to Dive in ten minutes after me, so that should give me just enough time to get his surprise ready. I had a mini-heart attack when I realized he had gone to Freelia the day before to pick up Sinon, but Alicia hadn't told him anything; I'd asked her to keep it a secret from him, so looks like she came through. Excellent... I'd be rubbing my hands together and cackling, if there was anyone here to see it. It's just not as satisfying when there's nobody around to play it up for, somehow. ...Actually, know what?

I rubbed my hands together. Mwhahahahahah.

Ah... Mine is an evil laugh. Anyway, I had... I glanced at the clock on the wall and nodded. I still had about eight minutes before Rythin would log in, and I had to kill it somehow. Maybe make sure everything was in proper working order. I ran through a few of my basic strikes from the in-game fighting style Wild Dance, running through my mental checklist in my head. Punches are good, kicks are good, rolls are - "Oof!" I grunted, having rolled straight into the wall. I stood up and shook my head, shaking away the dizziness. "Note to self," I muttered. "Don't roll around in cramped spaces. Man, and Ry makes this look so easy."

Rythin... He'd been worrying me recently. I wasn't stupid; I could see how he was holding back, how he was drawing into a shell for whatever reason. The only thing I can think of that might have caused him to withdraw like that would be what almost happened to Kirito a week and a half ago. Hah... I sighed, tiredly. Damn it, Ry... I'm here for you, just talk to me. But he won't, because he's too stubborn to ask for anyone's help. Because he thinks I don't want him relying on me, or he's afraid of bothering me, or something like that. Tch. Idiot. But he's my idiot, and I love him anyway.

With a little shimmer of light Din appeared, sitting up from where he had appeared on the bed and yawning slightly. "Hello, Mom," he said, and I noticed he was seeming a little more animated. Playing with Yui seems to be a good thing, I guess.

"Have fun playing with Yui?" I asked, smiling.

He nodded. "We broke through the firewall on Mister Agil's bar," he said. I just blinked and then smiled ruefully; I'd have to apologize to Agil next time I saw the big guy. Let's see... I think we're going to be grouping up there eventually.

"It's good you're having fun," I said sternly, "but you have to make sure you don't get in trouble, okay?" Okay, fine, so I was a little worried about the scamp. He was cute and adorable and maybe I was thinking of him as a son maybe just a little bit. Not that I'd ever admit that to Rythin, if only to avoid his smug 'I told you so' grin, or the 'I knew it' smirk. He had like five or six different variants of each grin, and I was learning how to tell the difference. The one that I hated to see the most, though, was the 'Everything's not fine but I'm going to say it is' weak smile. I'd been seeing that one more recently. But, at the same time I was seeing the 'I love you so very, very much and can't say it to your face' smile just as much, so... Good with the bad, silver linings and such. Hopefully, seeing his surprise will cheer him up.

My ten minutes were up, and I adjusted my new cloak with a small grin. I just had to be ready to pounce, and... With a small chiming, Rythin's avatar appeared on the bed we shared and I pounced, not wasting my opportunity since he would be up in a few seconds. He opened his lovely gray eyes and stared straight into mine – not that he had a choice, with how close our faces were – before blinking slowly. "Argo," he asked calmly, "is there a reason you're straddling me?"

"Guess," I purred.

I preened a little bit as his eyes traveled over the parts of me he could see from where he was. A girl likes to be appreciated from time to time, you know? "Well, the obvious is the new tunic," he said. "I happen to like the green. It complements your eyes well." It was a very pretty cloak-armor combo, actually. Alicia Rue had recommended it when I was talking things over with her, so I went and picked it up. I have to say, I like it; when the cloak was open it showed off my super-svelte body - and it was svelte, damn it, not scrawny - but when it was closed and the hood was up nobody could pick me out of the crowd. Well, except for, y'know, the whole cloak-and-hood thing.

"Is that all?"

He frowned slightly, his eyes locking on to my neck. "Is that..." Slowly, his eyes moved up my face to my head, where his eyes widened. Raising a hand, he gently flicked one of my ears, and I twitched. Who knew they could be so sensitive? "Argo?"

"Yeeeeessssss?" I drew the question out, grinning smugly. If only to make him wait just those few extra precious seconds longer.

"...How - no. _Why_ are you now a Cait Sith?" Hee hee hee.

* * *

 **Yep, Argo. Hee hee hee is indeed correct.**

 **So yes, Argo's avatar is now a Cait Sith! It now matches her Lost Song avatar, minus the cosmetic (hair and eye-color) differences caused by using her actual appearance. Also, Din – for those of you who didn't read the Sidequest where he appeared (jerks! Argh! *shakes fist*), Din's an AI that Nick wrote based on Yui's code to assist him in data gathering/management. Basically, he doesn't ever want to run into a situation like Death Gun again, where the problem could be solved if he had access to information. Nick thought he got rid of most of the traces of what made Yui Yui, but he missed a little tiny bit that made Yui want parents; as a result, Din imprinted on him and Kana, treating them as his parents.**

 **As for him being able to catch the arrow midflight, Rythin's totally the type of guy to just sit there and practice catching the arrows over and over and** _ **over**_ **again until he could pull it off successfully and look like a badass.**

 **Merry Christmas, jerks. As usual, many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.**


	14. God-Touched

**Chapter 14: God-Touched**

* * *

 **December 28** **th** **, 2025**

It was rather cold outside - to the point that when they greeted me this morning, Din and Yui had even dressed up in coats and scarfs, apparently going so far as to deliberately turn down the temperature in their world. Ah, kids.

It was extremely cold outside, which was why I was grateful for being nice and warm inside. "Only three days left until the New Year!" the annoyingly cheerful news host chirped, and I sent the television set a death glare. It was barely 8:30, it was cold outside, I should _not_ be awake right now but I am because _someone_ decided that two hours ago was the perfect time to go for a run and then have some light sparring. "And I hope you're all enjoying your holiday!" Oh go fuck yourself.

As the newslady kept talking about something or other and I blearily stared daggers at the TV, I munched at my toast. Just because I didn't like eating in the mornings didn't mean I wouldn't - after all, not eating and running out of energy would just be stupid. "Hey... were you two up late again last night?" Sugu asked with a sigh. I guess? Maybe? Was one in the morning late? My sleeping schedule's so fucked up I don't even know anymore. I just wake up tired and get a little bit more energy through the day, then go to bed when I'm tired. Rinse, repeat, hate everything. A little slice of paradise.

"Yeah," Kazuto sighed. "For a Mechatronics project for school. Nick was helping me out." He needed me to glance over some code - something wasn't working right with the processing of whatever the hell his little project was supposed to do, I didn't pay much attention to the hardware side of things - and even though I wasn't actually in that Mecha class of his I figured I'd help out. By the time we ended up finding the bug, it was, well, one in the morning and I just crashed at his house. Hence why I was currently eating breakfast at the Kirigaya's table. Not an unusual occurrence, but at least I had an excuse other than mooching this time.

"Mecha-wha?" Sugu asked, blinking. I just shrugged. "Sounds fun," she muttered, going back to staring at her tablet.

"Well, Sugu," I grumbled, "not all of us are amazing kendo...kendo-ers like you and we have to do regular class stuff things. Shut up I'm tired," I added when I saw Kazuto grinning slightly at my jumbled mess of words that just came out of my mouth. Sugu's lips were twitching too, and I just leaned back with a sigh and let out a huge yawn.

Beside me, Kazuto was sipping at his steaming mug of I think it was tea while watching the TV broadcast about some sort of accident on the highway. Glad I'm riding the bus. "Kazuto," Sugu said suddenly, and we both turned to look at her. "You see this yet?"

Kazuto set down his mug to look at the tablet she had just held up to his face when he suddenly choked and grabbed at the tablet. Sugu snatched her hand away, as though she had been expecting this reaction. "What the!" he exclaimed, staring daggers into the thin machine. "The Holy Sword Excalibur has been found?!"

I blinked. Fuck me but I hate waking up early. "Great, now we just need the Masamune and Durandal and we'll have a complete set," I growled.

"In ALO!" he shouted, and I twitched away. Too loud... Sugu, on the other hand, was calmly spreading butter on her toast, her pink mug sitting off to the side. I looked down at my own red one - she had insisted on getting me one, citing the number of times I dropped by for a meal or just to hang out with Kazuto and it turned into a longer debugging-slash-unwinding-slash-who knows what session than anticipated. Also because after Sugu and I sparred like we did this morning - another reason I'm grumpy, I mean come on who wakes people up just so that they can have a running partner, never mind I can actually keep up with her on her runs - we liked to sit down for a bit and let ourselves rest so that we didn't break what was only cracked, but hey, free mug. That's always cool. And it was red, too. And I should probably focus instead of letting my mind wander, this Excalibur thing seems important. "Man, that sucks," he sighed, thankfully turning down the volume and sitting back, running a hand through his hair. "I can't believe someone else beat us to it."

"Read the article, doofus," Sugu replied, examining her toast to make sure it was ready to eat. "It says it was found, is all. No one's actually got it yet." She brought her toast to her mouth and chomped down on a corner. I heard it crunch. Fuck me but I take a while to wake up. Or maybe it was one too many blows to the head from her practice sword. I mean, yeah I was wearing heavy protective gear, but it was still barehanded against a sword. I was just lucky my skills from Alfheim and Aincrad transferred over slightly.

Kazuto gave the article a closer look, and I saw his shoulders visibly relax. "Oh yeah, you're right," he said. After shaking his head, he grinned at Sugu. "Don't scare me like that."

His sister didn't respond, being too busy giving him a cat-like smile while eating her toast. I took a sip from my mug and set it down. "Alright, you two need to explain this right now because I'm feeling relatively coherent which lasts for like a minute or two and somewhat-awake me is starting to get lost. Excalibur in Alfheim? Whhhhaaaaa?" I drew the question out slightly, just managing to cut it off before it transformed into a yawn - that then broke through my tense jaw a second later despite all efforts to stop it.

Kazuto grunted slightly as he stared at the article. "A couple months ago, on the Arun Plains, Leafa, Yui and me got swallowed by a big-ass monster worm." Leafa, Yui, and _I_ , Kazuto. Please, I'm tired and I still have correct pronouns. Just not correct anything else important like grammar or coherency. "It took us to a place called Jotunheimr." Sounds vaguely Norse. Then again, it's Alfheim, most things in that place are Norse. I glanced at Sugu, but she was munching away on her slice of toast; she couldn't confirm or deny any of my suspicions. "Really cold, snowy, the works. Anyway, we looked around for a bit, and then came across this giant four-armed humanoid monster." He shuddered. "It was bizarre. Brown skin, six eyes, and a sword as tall as it was in each hand." Sounds like fun, let's kill it. "It was fighting a monster that looked like a cross between a jellyfish and an elephant."

I raised an open hand, silently asking him to stop. "So, to confirm what you've told me so far - you got swallowed by a worm -" Kazuto nodded, "- it took you to what sounds like Cocytus?" He nodded again, slowly at first then with a little bit of confusion as he placed the reference. "Fuck me and I thought Hell was supposed to be hot. Anyway, while there you saw the four-armed cousin of Goliath and he was fighting Cthulhu's bastard demon-spawn."

Kazuto blinked, then nodded. "Yeah, that's about right."

I closed my fist. "Very good, carry on then," I said, giving him my attention.

"Go figure," Kazuto sighed, "Sugu felt sorry for the... jellephant... thing... and told me to go save it." I glanced at Sugu, and she was looking off to the side - I gather her method of telling Kazuto to go save Kidthulhu was a little more direct than just giving him the puppy eyes and asking pretty please. "I lured Four-arms onto this frozen lake, and it fell through the ice. Then, the jellephant took care of it." He grinned slightly. "It came out from the water like a sea monster, then wrapped its tentacles around the other monster and dragged it down into the watery depths before electrocuting it."

I blinked and sighed. "Hah... Y'know, this really isn't helping the constant comparisons to Cthulhu."

"After it came out of the water -" because of course it has to be amphibious, no self-respecting Cthulhu ripoff would dare not walk on land "- Leafa decided to call it Tonkii. After that, it transformed into an even _weirder_ looking monster, growing a whole bunch of extra tentacles and eight wings." I just closed my eyes and whimpered slightly. Fucking tentacles. Wings weren't so bad, though. "Sugu hugged it immediately, of course."

"Of course," I agreed without the slightest shred of disbelief. Girl would find a way to hug a snake made of swords if she thought it looked cute.

"Screw you both," Sugu muttered without missing a beat.

"Anyway, we hopped on its back and it took us to a passage way leading to the surface world." Personal transport. Nice. "On the way up was when we saw it. An upside-down pyramid made of ice, hanging from the World Tree. The lowest point of the pyramid was transparent, and we could see a twisting staircase coming from higher up. It opened up into a room with a long, gold sword shimmering inside." Kazuto's eyes gleamed with what I assumed to be greed and or a combination of lust and envy. You really should stop comparing swords like that in public, it's not decent. "Excalibur."

I snorted. "I bet you were staring at it like Asuna used to stare at you from across the room in Aincrad."

"Shut up, Nick," Kazuto grumbled, nudging me in the ribs, and I hissed, drawing away from the contact. He had managed to hit one of the ribs Sugu thwacked with her thwacky-stick earlier, and it was a little tiny bit sore. "I was planning on going back to get it..."

"It'd be a nice break from all the floor clearing you're doing in New Aincrad," Sugu offered, studiously staring at the cup in her hand as she poured some milk into it. Once it was full, she reached over and put it in front of Kazuto before shifting to pick mine up.

"This article doesn't say how they found it," Kazuto said, skimming whatever news site he was on. MMO Tomorrow or something like that, probably.

I shrugged, nodding gratefully to Sugu as she poured me some milk. "Thanks, Sugu. Anyway, Kazuto, I doubt 'We saved a giant tentacle hellspawn thing from a four-armed giant' would be very, well... good."

"Thing is," Kazuto said, since Sugu seemed determined not to meet our eyes - something was definitely up, and a not-sleepy me would have figured it out already - and was instead filling her own cup with milk, "players can't fly in Jotunheimr. But that's the only way to spot Excalibur. That thing's too high up to see."

"Unless they rescued one of Tonkii's friends," Sugu said finally, "hitched a ride and triggered the quest flag." Point. "If we could do it, so could someone else." She started sipping at her milk, using two hands. That was significant, why was it significant, gods damn you brain work for five fucking seconds.

"I guess that could work," Kazuto said, "though... who'd trust a creepy -" Sugu's eyes narrowed, and she glared at him over her mug with a sound of irritation. Oh, right, two-handed mug sipping means she's expecting me or Kazuto to be an idiot about something. Kazuto stiffened, and grinned weakly as he tried to verbally backpedal. "Ah... I, uh, mean, who'd trust such a unique monster? Unless they had weird ta-" Sugu's sound of annoyance was louder and more drawn out this time, and her glare hadn't shifted a budge. Rather freaky, actually. "I mean, um, a weirdly big heart." Sugu was silent, though her glare didn't diminish and she blew bubbles in her milk. Evidently that had pacified her slightly. "Someone just like you, sis!" Kazuto finished, beaming at her and probably whimpering for mercy internally. "What are the odds?"

"He's not creepy, he's adorable," Sugu whined. I looked closer, and yep that was a milk mustache alright. Then she wiped her mouth and sighed. "Anyway, the whole point of showing you that was to get you going. It's only a matter of time before someone grinds through that dungeon and gets the sword."

"You're right," Kazuto said somberly, "clock's ticking."

"So, what're you gonna do about it?" she asked.

Kazuto carefully set his mug down and cleared his throat. I leaned back and folded my arms, watching this with interest. Hey, I wasn't going to miss my chance to internally snark along with his dramatic speech. "Sugu," he said, "getting rare items isn't the point of it." Uh huh. And I'm a shining beacon of truth, justice, and kindness. "If that's all you're playing for, you're missing out." Of course, there's all the monster and player murder to be had. Such fun.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Sugu said. "There's funner things to do than boosting stats." But... But sweet, sweet arbitrary numbers! Rising by arbitrary amounts because of an arbitrary item! How could you not love that!

"I wasn't finished," Kazuto said, leaning forward. "I think Tonkii wanted us to find it, and that's why he showed us where it was." Translation: 'I want the sword, Sugu.' "For some reason, he needs us to clear that dungeon, so it's up to us to make that wish come true." Sugu smirked slightly, and I let my own break the surface. We both knew him too well. "Tonkii's our friend, and there's no way I'm turning my back on a friend." 'Sugu, I really really really _really_ want to get the rare sword.'

Sugu hummed in thought, still smirking knowingly. "A minute ago, you called your friend creepy," she taunted, casually resting an arm on her chair back, and Kazuto grumbled under his breath.

"I meant, creepy cool!" he tried after a second, and Sugu's smug grin didn't shift in the slightest. "Anyway, you in?" There we go.

Sugu didn't blink. "Sure," she said easily. "I don't have practice 'cause of the holidays, and Nick and I had enough fun this morning." I shuddered slightly. Ow. Mentioned the idea two weeks ago and I'm already regretting it.

A smacking sound made me look over, and Kazuto was suddenly alive, a fire burning in his eyes. He had slammed his fist into his palm. "Awesome! Okay, we'll need seven others. We don't wanna overload Tonkii." He grinned. "For starters, we've got you, me, and Asuna. Then there's Nick and Argo, and Klein, Liz, and Silica." He folded his arms, looking down at the table in thought. "We need one more person..." He sighed. "Agil's got work tonight... Chrysheight's not levelled up yet..." He looked at me. "Nick, would any of your contacts be willing to join?"

I shrugged. "Likely not. Most of the mercs I know charge for their services, and I don't feel like paying. And most of my clients are either large groups or, taking the Steel Hearts for example, a guild." I let my eyes unfocus as I started rolling through the list of possible solo players that had hired me. A second later, I came up with a grand total of none. I just usually didn't work with a single other person, I was more useful to pad out weaknesses.

Sugu brightened. "Oh, I know! Let's ask Sinon!"

Kazuto snapped his fingers and leaned forward. "Great idea, sis!"

"What'd you expect?" Oh yeah, they were the same age, weren't they? ...Gah. Every time I remember that, it's a little depressing to realize that both Sugu and Sinon are four years younger than me. "I'll message 'em right now." She laughed slightly. "Except for Asuna and Argo, I'll leave that to you two."

"Okay," Kazuto said, immediately heading upstairs for his phone.

Mine was in my pocket along with my music player, so I had no problem whipping it out and dialing Kana. After two rings, it picked up. "What time?" my girlfriend asked immediately, and I snickered. Of course she'd know everything. Din probably listened in on our conversation and told her what was going on as it happened.

"Late this afternoon, I think. I'll let you know when I get an actual time from the Kirigaya kids."

"Done and done. Tell Kazuto he's an idiot for keeping this a secret, mm'kay?"

I grinned. "I'll tell him twice. Love you."

"Love you too, Nick." The line went dead, and I pulled my phone back to grin at it briefly. Gods but I love her.

The sound of Sugu tapping her tablet stopped, and I looked up to see her shaking her head at me. "You two are terrifying, you know that?" she said casually.

"Eh," I shrugged. "Better than Kazuto and Asuna. 'Oh, I miss you.' 'I miss you too.' 'No, you hang up first.' Sickening, really." I pretended to retch, and she giggled.

"Why use two fake high-pitched voices? I know you could probably mimic their actual voices, I've heard you do it before."

I grinned. "Why ruin the fun?" Kazuto returned to the table, phone in hand, and I could hear it ringing. Would Asuna even be available? I think she's going to visit her grandparents soon, I think...

The line connected, and I heard Asuna stammer, "H-Hi, Kirito."

"Mornin', Asuna," he said, a big grin on his face. "Sorry to call so early. We were planning on going on a quest in ALO this afternoon. You...wanna go?" It's like asking a... gah fuck my brain is going back off of its little period of being useful and I can't even figure out a good comparison metaph-imile because that's totally a thing arghhhhh. I think the slight thunk of my forehead hitting the table might have startled Kazuto because he looked over; after a second, I felt Sugu reach over and poke me gently. I just swatted at her hand and she giggled quietly. I wanna listen to the private phone call between Asuna and Kazuto, Sugu, hush.

"Yeah," Asuna agreed immediately, "I'll totally go. I'm free all day today!"

"Cool," Kazuto said, his grin widening. Wow he really wants Excalibur. "I'll text you the time and place, so keep an eye on it."

"You know I will," Asuna said warmly. "See you in a little while then!"

"Bye." Kazuto drew the phone back, and grinned at us. "Looks like we're good to go."

Awesome.

* * *

Turns out, having all of our friends with a connection to the world where Din and Yui hang out? Super convenient. Din and Yui were having the time of their lives, apparently, flitting back and forth from screen to screen - how our phones and computers and tablets appeared in their world. I was considering trying to make a full three-dimensional model of the surroundings, but it would need a lot more cameras than what I had available. I think that's part of Kazuto's project, actually - and chatting with everyone during the time building up to when we Dove in to Alfheim.

Because Agil had work, our meeting place was in Liz's blacksmith shop - partially because it was a nice neutral location for everyone involved, and partially because that way she could give our weapons a once-over before we left, just to make sure nothing had broken. Argo and I walked in, the bell over her door chiming; according to Din, who was riding on my shoulder at the moment, we were the last two to arrive, so I wasn't surprised to see our friends - Kirito was leaning against the wall, while Klein, Sinon and Silica, Pina riding on her head, were all seated at the large table in the back. Liz looked over from where she was standing next to her forge and grindstone and grinned. "Weapons in the basket, please," she called out without stopping the rhythmic pounding of her hammer. Repairing what looked like Klein's katana, actually.

Nodding, Argo and I divested ourselves of our weaponry, mine taking just a tiny bit longer, what with the dagger, Dragontalons, and veritable mountain of knives - it was kinda hilarious to see Kirito's eyes widen as I produced knives from pretty much everywhere on my body - but eventually the two of us joined the others in the backroom, such as it was. The others had all seen Argo's new Cait Sith form the day after she showed me, so they knew what was up; I'm still not entirely sure why she switched, but I wasn't complaining. Klein was busy draining a stein of what was probably beer, and as we sat down he finished it off and slammed the mug on the table, laughing. Argo and I slipped around and snagged spots between Silica and Sinon, if only so that all of the Cait Sith would be sitting together. It was pointless, but still amusing. "Hey, Klein?" Silica asked. "Do you get to take vacation for New Years?"

"Been on it since yesterday!" he bragged. "Even if I wanted to work, and I don't, there's no shipments this time 'a year." Was he drunk? His cheeks were a little flushed, but I don't think that's because of the alcohol. Either way, not anything all that different from how he normally acts. Wait, what is his job, anyway? "Know what my cheap-ass boss said?" he asked, ignoring the way Silica was laughing slightly and Argo grinning. "'Be thankful you got a job where you get a whole week off for New Years,' braggin' about it like he was doin' us a favor." Silica was twitching slightly. He turned to Kirito and grinned. "And speaking of favors, if we do manage to snag Excalibur today, how about doing me a solid and helping me get my hands on the Soulblade Kagutsuchi?"

"Seriously?" Kirito didn't sound impressed. "That dungeon's like a friggn' oven, man."

I snorted. "Maybe if you didn't have that stupid long coat of yours, it wouldn't be so bad."

"Like you're one to talk."

I drew myself to my full, if seated, height rather than my usual slouch. "I'll have you know this is a jacket, thank you very much, and specially made to resist heat."

"And besides," Klein pointed out, "I'm goin' to Jotunheimr for you, where it's colder than the ass end of an ice pop."

"You know," Sinon added, "I want something out of this too." We'd gotten her some new armor, and it looked good. Like something a member of Trinity would wear. "The Shekhinah Bow."

Silence fell over the table as we all tried to process how deadly Sinon would be if she had a bow that shot twice as far as the one that she had right now. "Your avatar's only two weeks old, and you're already gunning for a legendary weapon?" Kirito asked carefully. Which reminded me that apparently the Dragontalons were a legendary pair of gloves as well. Weird that that guy would have sold them to me for as cheap as he did, but I didn't ask questions.

"Yeah, well," Sinon said, folding her arms under her chin, "that bow Liz made me is great and all, but... I need something with a little more range."

"A little more range," I repeated in a flat tone. "That's it, this universe is fucked. I'm out, I'm done. Sinon with the ability to kill from farther away is just a _nope_ on my scale from one to ten of very bad things."

"Oh yeah?" Liz called out from the back; we all looked back to see her holding Sinon's bow. "If you want more range, then what're ya using a bow in ALO for?" She pulled the string back, trembling with the strain of the draw weight. Sinon's avatar was surprisingly strong, since I'd tried pulling back the string and found it somewhat difficult. Though, to be fair, I was more or less a stealth build. I doubt Kirito would have any problem with it. "Range falls between spears and magic."

I sighed. "Have you _seen_ her trying to kill me?" Seriously, it was a more or less daily occurrence. When I said 'try to kill me', Sinon, I meant only that one time. Or maybe this was just her way of teasing me. Still, she knew I could dodge it, so it was mostly in good fun.

"You're like the only player that wants to use these things from a hundred meters," Liz said, and I shuddered slightly, remembering that horrible rain of pointy things. Sinon just smiled and laughed, while the others chuckled uneasily.

"If I had my way," Sinon purred, "I'd want double that range, at least."

Erk. Liz jerked back, shocked, and then looked at me. "Rythin, you said something about the universe being fucked?"

The door creaked open, and I looked over to see Leafa and Asuna standing there, each with a basket of potions in their hands, and Yui riding on Asuna's shoulder. "We're back, guys!" Leafa called out.

"Thanks for waiting," Asuna said with a smile.

Silica giggled. "We thought you were never coming back. Argo and Rythin showed up before you guys got back, and they Dove in ten minutes late."

"What's up?" Klein asked, grinning as the girls walked over and started unloading their baskets onto the table. "You get lost or something?"

"Not at all!" Yui chirped, flying over to land on Kirito's head. "We were gathering information while we shopped!"

Din pouted and flew over to hover in front of her. "That's my job!"

"Too slow," Yui said, sticking her tongue out at him. Kirito and I exchanged glances, both of us trying to keep the grins off of our faces. We were guys, we weren't allowed to be amused at the antics of our more-or-less-adopted kids. "We talked to a whole bunch of people, Daddy, and so far not one player or party has reached that dungeon yet."

He blinked. "Really..." Huh. "Well, then... how the heck do they know where Excalibur's at?"

"That's the thing, Daddy," Yui said. "No one really knows where it is. Apparently, they found a different quest than the one Tonkii showed us." I think I like her 'cute little kid' voice, the one she was using now, better than her 'calm and collected AI' voice. But that's just a personal opinion. "They met an NPC who told them if they finished this other quest, they'd get Excalibur as the reward."

Asuna placed a potion on the table to join the growing pile of vials. "And from what we heard," she said, "the quest they're going on isn't very pleasant. Instead of a delivery quest, or an escort quest, it's a kill quest." I think you got those second and third ones mixed up, sweetheart. Everyone knows escort quests are the bane of existence, while kill quests are just mindless fun. "Just... slaughtering monsters." See? Mindless fun. "Everyone is out there in Jotunheimr right now, killing as many as they can."

"Yeah, that doesn't even sound close to being pleasant," Kirito agreed. I raised an eyebrow and glanced at Argo; she subtly shook her head. Don't say anything, got it.

Klein looked around at all of us. "This whole thing sounds sketchy to me, guys." He raised a finger. "Here's what we know. There's a dungeon in the sky with Excalibur locked up at the bottom of it. To get to it, you gotta fight your way through a bunch of monsters." He waved his other hand. "But now, we got an NPC offering it up as a kill quest reward? That's bizarre."

Silica was stroking Pina, a nervous habit to soothe herself, likely. "Now that you mention it," she said, her eyes worried, "that is weird." She looked up, and Pina crooned slightly. "The NPC's not showing anyone to the dungeon, but that's where the sword is."

I blinked. "So... the quest is fishy? Bogus? A big fat lie? Any other synonyms?"

"I think it would be more 'similar colloquialisms'," Argo murmured.

"Whatever. Grammar aside, we've come to the conclusion that this kill quest is a very, _very_ well-designed hoax."

"That's the thing," Yui said, looking at me. "It isn't! It's an actual quest."

We all hummed in thought - I tried to harmonize, but it was over too soon - and Sinon picked up one of the health potions. "Well," she said, "I'm sure we'll figure out why when we get there." Makes sense. See, this is why I wanted her for Trinity. To cut through my plans when I'm being too Evil Overlord-y. Kinda like the average five-year-old child. Heh. Mental note: call her a five-year-old child at some point and find a way to make it sound flattering.

"Alrighty," Lisbeth cheered, carrying over a huge armful of weapons - I glanced behind her to see the rest of my knives just sitting on the anvils, sorted by type. "Your weapons are all repaired and ready for action!"

As the others equipped their weapons and - oh, fine, they all posed, trying to look all cool and stuff - I calmly continued hiding the knives back in their spots. "Oh, don't mind me," I called out, "just keep looking badass over there without me."

"Even though our party's full of hotness," Klein snickered, "we're still a bunch of gear-toting meatheads."

"If you wanna switch it up," Liz said with a smirk, "you could always boost your magic." I forget, is that her 'I'm messing with you' smirk or the 'I'm totally into Kirito' smirk? I think the context might be important.

"Hah!" Klein scoffed, looking away arrogantly. "Keep dreamin'. A real samurai? He wouldn't be caught dead using magic."

"Actually," I pointed out, still slipping knives into my boots and pants, "the samurai we know of now is highly romanticized. A samurai back in their time would probably have seen magic as practical and -"

"Shut it, Rythin," Klein growled good-naturedly. "Code of honor."

"Code of honor, huh?" Liz sighed. "Know what samurai's are classified as in RPGs? They're both warriors and black magic users." Eh, only in some.

"Please," Klein said, "I'd rather bust my sword and quit being a samurai than use magic, doll."

"I dunno, Klein," Silica said, turning around with a grin on her face. "If I remember right, didn't you use a flame Sword Skill the other day? You know when you activate it, you _are_ using part magic!"

Klein jerked in shock, and Lisbeth snickered. "No way! Really?!" the samurai yelped.

"Yes, Klein," Yui said from her seat on Kirito's shoulder. "What Silica said is true. Remember the May update? It brought a whole bunch of new Sword Skills to ALO." She raised a finger. "Some are physical, and others are advanced! Like Earth, Water, Fire, Wind, Dark, and Divine." Finally finished making myself certain to never be able to pass through a metal detector the first time, I did a quick count; I needed to get more of the Dark and Divine-elemental daggers. I had plenty of the others, but... Eh, hopefully I wouldn't need them. I had my Illusion magic, which was fairly useful in its own way. "All of which are magical attributes."

"Fire's a magical attribute too, huh?" Klein all but whimpered.

"Okay, ex-samurai," Liz said, pulling out her mace and waving it in his face. "Need help bustin' that sword?"

Before I could blink, Klein was pressed against Kirito's stomach, clutching his sword like it was his baby. Seriously, Kirito? Not enough for the ladies, but now the guys, too? "Dude, back me up here!" he whimpered while the others laughed. But not me. Nope. I didn't laugh at his misfortune in the slightest. Not at all. Pfft, perish the thought.

"Well," Kirito said, "since you don't chant when using Sword Skills, I guess it's not the same..." Klein turned and nodded to Lisbeth, tears in his eyes.

Liz hefted her mace before slinging it on her hip. "I'll let it slide this time," she said with a smirk. Klein sighed with relief, and Yui giggled at him.

Kirito grinned and looked around at all of us. "I really appreciate you guys helping me out on such short notice."

I shrugged. "Not like I have any projects to do."

"Actually," Argo said, tapping me on the shoulder, "we have that paper due in like a week, remember?"

"...shit."

"Seriously," Kirito said, ignoring me and Argo easily. "You don't know how much this means to me. Alright, are you ready?" he called, raising a fist.

"Yeah!" the others shouted, raising a fist. I just mumbled something and raised my fist slightly.

Our first enemy, our first foe that we had to conquer, the strongest obstacle in our path - was a really fucking long flight of stairs. Seriously. We'd been running for like three minutes straight and there was still no sign of us coming out on the bottom. I knew we had to go through the entirety of the World Tree's roots, but come on isn't there like an elevator or something? "Augh," Lisbeth moaned as we all ran down the steps, "how many steps does this thing have, anyway?"

"Really regretting trading in my Imp wings," Argo panted.

Din snickered. "I don't see the problem."

"Well, you're flying, kid," I grumbled. "Makes things a little bit easier."

"I bet the tower on the dungeon floor of New Aincrad doesn't even have as many as this," Leafa muttered.

"Oh c'mon, it's not that bad," Kirito called out. "If we took the normal route to Jotunheimr, it'd take at least two hours. This way, it's just five minutes! Instead of complaining about the stairs, you should be thankin' me for showing you the rad shortcut."

"Yeah, yeah," Sinon sighed. "You're right. Still a pain in the butt."

The second she said that, I knew it was a bad idea. "I got your pain in the butt," Kirito muttered, before grabbing her tail with a smirk.

"Ahhnn!" Sinon squeaked, spine going straight with a shiver and the fur on her ears bristling slightly. The tail was a rather... sensitive area for Cait Sith, especially females. Pulling one? Apparently, it was more or less foreplay to couples with a Cait Sith as one of the participants, according to some forum posts that I will never be able to un-see. "Yaaaahnn!" she moaned, turning to stare at her tail with red cheeks. Lords, it's like I can see the heart-shaped bubbles around them. "Why... you...!" she snarled, swinging at Kirito with clawed hands. He dodged her swipes and fell back away from the blue ball of feminine rage, laughing, and Klein just looked at him in shock. "Dumbass," she snapped, sounding breathless. Wow, her fangs were showing. "Do that again and you get a fire arrow in your piehole!" I watched with an amazed stare as Silica turned around and looked at her own tail, murmuring despondently as Pina keened a sound of confusion.

"Brother," Klein muttered, "you've got balls of steel. No joke."

Argo and I exchanged glances and then laughed. Suddenly, electricity arced down my spine and I snapped my head back; Lisbeth immediately pulled her hand back, whistling innocently. "Touch it and I throw you down these stairs head first," I growled. "And use you as a surfboard."

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Rythin," Liz said innocently. Far too innocently.

Eventually, we reached the bottom of the stairs and stepped out into - oh for fuck's sake did it have to be windy? I didn't mind the odd snowfall, I didn't care about the cold, but the wind just cut me straight to the bone. The others were all looking around in awe while I leaned into Argo's warmth, glad for her heat; behind me, Klein was shivering. "Freezing!" he gasped.

The cliff we stood on overlooked a massive field of snow and ice and cold dark stone. But it wasn't foreboding, exactly; merely... natural. What an arctic tundra would look like, should look like. A plane of existence untouched by humans. Above us were the roots of the World Tree, wreathed in fog; the fog didn't seem to move despite the cold wind blowing, and I absently wondered how far the grey sky stretched. It couldn't actually be infinite, could it? Even Alfheim just let out into sea after a while. "Wowzers," Silica gasped, looking around in awe.

"Amazing," Sinon whispered, her breath puffing out in clouds. It wasn't exactly a featureless plane, despite the initial appearance; there were ridges and valleys, columns and spires that reached up towards the sky. Icicles dangled from the roots, massive spikes that came to a wicked point. The other girls looked around and gasped in awe, Leafa and Kirito grinning at our reactions.

"Amazing," Argo whispered, hands twitching as she scribbled notes around me while I huddled in her warmth. Thank the gods for that cloak of hers. "All this was under Alfheim and it's unexplored, just because _someone_ wanted to keep it a secret?" She shot a glare at Kirito, though it was laced with playfulness. Don't ask me how she did it, I can't get past the one-emotion looks. Kirito just grinned and scratched at his cheek. "But ya said sorry, so I can't really hold it against ya." She really must be excited; most of the time, she didn't lapse into her dialect. I vaguely remember something about the roots of the tree, and - oh _fuck_ shouldn't Nidhoggr be attacking the roots? Fuck, I hope we don't run into that dude.

Kirito took a deep breath of the cold, crisp air, and Klein shivered more. "Man, aren't you cold?"

"Probably the coat," I called back.

Asuna smiled and turned around before raising a hand. The circles of words appeared around her and she chanted, "Oss sér rauðr vind, burt hálka stórhrið!" As the magic took effect and the cold receded, I gave Argo a grateful hug and stepped away from her, letting her get to her note-taking in earnest. She had even shifted to dictating to Din, if only because he could record it and play it back later, transcribing it as he went. Klein stopped shivering with a sigh of relief and straightened up. "Better?" Asuna asked. "I cast a Freeze Resistance spell over us." You really are an angel, Asuna.

Leafa nodded to us and then turned to face the empty sky and whistled, a quick three tone high-low-high. The signal for other members of Trinity to come when in battle; but here, I'm assuming it was a call for Tonkii to show up. After several seconds of silence, we peered over the edge, curious; a faint honking call echoed up to us, and I saw a small speck moving in the distance. That was probably Tonkii. "Tonkii!" Yui shouted. "Up here!" The faint call took on a distinctively bass rumble, and I felt it shudder through my bones when Tonkii called again. Maybe that elephant thing wasn't too far off.

Then Tonkii surged up to where we could... see... him? It? What the hell was that bastard offspring of a spider and Cthulhu? Gods damn. "Jesus!" Klein yelped, taking several steps back. Not that I could blame him, I wanted to do the same thing and the only thing that was stopping me was that Argo seemed to be holding my hand rather tightly. Probably to make me not make a fool out of myself. But seriously. Tonkii was a gigantic white cross between a jellyfish and an elephant, just like Kirito had said; his head was shaped like an elephants, if you ignore the four extra eyes, one by the edge of the jaw and another smaller pair underneath his main set. The trunk moved and flexed, and the tusks seemed like they were made of bone. Eight translucent wings spread out from Tonkii's back, explaining how the jellephant - fuck you Kirito for making that a word, by the way - could fly around and hover in place. I looked over the cliff and wished I hadn't; the tentacles underneath its body were undulating in a way that should be reserved solely for things very, very deep under the sea, and two of them were even longer and seemed to be prehensile if the twitches were any indications. Erk.

"Take it easy, Klein," Kirito murmured. "He doesn't look it, but he's a vegetarian."

"Well," Leafa said, turning around. "Not exactly. When I brought him some fish from above ground, he scarfed it all down in one bite." Oh yes because that's _just_ what we needed to hear right now.

Tonkii's trunk came up and snorted before planting itself on Klein's head. "Wh-what's it doin'?" the man gasped, half-bent over.

Kirito chuckled. "He's telling you to get on his back, is all," he said.

"Dude," Klein ground out between clenched teeth, "no way. No way in Hell! My grandpa's dyin' words were 'Don't ride in foreign cars or flyin' Cthulhu elephants'!"

"Oh thank gods," I said, shifting uneasily. "Someone else made the connection too."

Kirito laughed. "Is he the same dead grampa whose dried figs we were eating at Dicey's the other day?" He pressed a hand on Klein's back and forced him forward. "Stop fartin' around and get on."

"It'll eat me, man," Klein protested. By that point, the other girls had all climbed on one at a time, and I jumped up, my feet tapping against Tonkii's bone guard as I moved as quickly as possible so that I didn't have to think about the fact that I was now on top of the Cthulhu-spawn.

"This is gonna be fun," Liz said, looking around. At least someone can have some fun with this.

I saw Klein clambering over the bone ridge, and I grinned at the face he was making. "We're so dead," he grumbled. Below, Kirito was speaking with Tonkii quietly, patting the gigantic abomination fondly on the spot where its nose would be if it didn't have its skeleton on the outside before jumping up.

"Alright, Tonkii," Leafa said with an excited grin. "Everyone's on board, so take us to that dungeon!"

With a roar, Tonkii spun in midair and started flying through the air, its wings beating slowly as it made its way to the inverted pyramid I could see in the distance. He was massive, so it made sense that he would cover distance quickly; what we were covering in seconds Leafa and I would have been hard-pressed to keep up with in the air with our wings. Forced on the ground, well... There was absolutely no way I could possibly have kept up with him. Probably not even Asuna, the fastest mover I knew. The wind was blowing fiercely, but because of Asuna's spell it didn't even make me flinch; instead, I just lied down on Tonkii's back and folded my arms under my chin, getting comfortable. Argo laid down next to me, while the others were all leaning against the ridge of Tonkii's bone, staring at the scenery. Well, except for Klein; he was cowering down a little bit, trying his best to act like he was anywhere but here. "Wow," Liz gasped, staring down at the field of ice and snow below. "I wonder what would happen if you fell from way up here?"

"The same that happened when a certain _someone_ decided to get to the next level of Aincrad by climbing the outer pillars," Asuna said, grinning at Kirito. I sat up and stood, joining my fellow Cait Sith. "So how about it, Wonder-Klutz? Care to show the lady?"

"Nah," he replied easily, "I think I'll pass. But maybe one of our more cat-like friends would like to take a shot."

"Nope nope nope nope nope!" the four of us chorused in unison, shaking our heads instantly.

Suddenly, Tonkii made another one of his noises that I can't think of onomatopoeia for and we all looked over curiously. An instant later, my stomach met my heart when Tonkii plunged suddenly; the girls grabbed on to Tonkii's bone ridge, while Kirito and I managed to snag some tufts of his fur. Everyone screamed - except me, I shouted in a very manly fashion - and Leafa turned that into a wild burst of laughter at the ride. Eh, I think this is better than rollercoasters. Which reminds me, Argo isn't a fan of them; I glanced over at my girlfriend, and grinned when I saw her looking slightly ill. I then realized that I was looking up Sinon's skirt. "Woohoo!" Leafa shouted as the rest of us voiced our own thoughts on that matter - those being something along the lines of 'Aaaaaahhhhh!' or some such combination of those letters.

After a few seconds, the terrifying rollercoaster from hell stopped and Tonkii levelled out again, letting us all relax. He was a lot closer to the ground now, and a hell of a lot closer to a gigantic pit just to our right. I just sighed in relief and let go of my death grip on Tonkii's fur. "So, Sinon," I said casually, "black? I dunno if it works with the hair."

She turned from her position half-draped over Tonkii's ridge and looked at me, confused; after a second, she flushed and bared her fangs at me, realizing what I was talking about, while I just kept a calm grin on my face. "I will shove an arrow so far up your ass you'll be shitting splinters for a month!" she snarled, her fingers curving into claws for a second. I just chuckled and closed my eyes, sitting back slightly. Argo nudged me slightly, and I grunted before cracking open an eye to see her shaking her head in mock disapproval.

Leafa gasped, then. "Kazuto, get up here, check that out!" She pointed, and we all came up to join her. Down in the distance, we could see what appeared to be a four-armed giant with swords - the monster Kirito mentioned earlier - as well as another one of the pre-flying space jellyfish thing that Tonkii had been. The black specks around them must be players, then; after a second, the jellephant went up in a blaze of flames, and I bit off a curse before the others could hear it. The four-armed giant reared back and slammed one of its massive blades into the back of the land-bound elefish - no, no, that just makes it sound like an electric eel - and the monster writhed in pain and agony. Normally, my blood would be singing with the sight of pain like that, but up here I was too far away to enjoy the bloodshed and instead watched it impartially.

"My god," Asuna whispered. "I - I can't believe it. They figured out how to make that monster fight for them."

"No, there's gotta be another reason!" Silica said. "It's not possible to tame the bigger monsters in this game, not even if you're a Cait Sith Master Tamer with a power boost and a full set of special equipment!" Pina keened her agreements. Was the dragon getting smarter? Somehow, I fancied I could hear words in her cries now.

"Then they're leeching off the monster?" Klein asked while rubbing his head, wonder in his voice. "No, wait, they're not leeching," he muttered as he stared at the fight, "they're piggybacking! Yeah, that's it! See, that group there's got ol' Four-arms doing all the heavy lifting and sniping at the jellephant when they get an opening!"

Sinon looked over at us. "But... is it that easy to control a monster's aggro? It's ignoring everyone else!"

"If you know how to do it, it is," I said. "But it's very difficult, and managing two monsters like that group down there is doing?" I shook my head. "You'd have to be a tactical genius to do it correctly without losing any of your men. I've tried, trust me, but it's just too much in the heat of battle." We found that out the hard way; one particular boss in Aincrad had the very annoying habit of summoning monsters and then hitting them all with a buff that would turn them into raging berserkers. I'd tried to have the tanks lure the raging monsters into striking Verel, The Centaur Commander for us, but it didn't work very well. I was glad we managed to get away from that fight without casualties, and most of that was because the tanks thankfully didn't panic and instead withdrew carefully and without exposing themselves to extra danger. "No, what they're doing is something different." I pointed. "See how the jellephant just fell over? If my guess is right, the mages will take their chance..." Below, the bright red flash of the Salamander symbol appeared, and fires erupted around the jellephant. It reared back, shrieking in pain, before finally shattering with the sound of broken glass. Tonkii cried out in shared emotive empathy for its fallen comrade, and everyone - except me - was stunned into silence. "Mm. Now that it's dead, the four-armed giant should normally attack the fighters. But if my guess is right..." The giant started walking away, and the players followed meekly in a line. "Ah. It's leading them, not the other way around."

"How come they're not taking on that four-arm dude?" Kirito asked. "Where's everyone going?"

I shrugged, my lips a flat line. "That kill quest? Probably to take out all the jellephants." I heard the others hiss in a breath, and I nodded grimly. "For now, the four-arms aren't even enemies. They're allied party members to the fighters down there."

"H-Hey, you guys, look!" Asuna pointed a trembling finger, and we all looked over to see explosions of flame, bright and red against the pure white snow. Each burst of flame was another strike against a jellephant, another death to the hands of the four-armed giants.

"What the hell's going on down there?" Klein asked.

Liz stared. "After what we just saw and how it went down, it should be pretty obvious what it is," she said somberly. "I hate to say it, but Rythin's right. That's the kill quest Asuna told us about. Even though it's a quest, helping these four-armed freaks murder Tonkii's friends is... disgusting."

I kept my thoughts on the matter private. Tonkii slowly came to a halt in midair, and we all straightened, looking around in confusion; suddenly, a sound came from behind us accompanied by a glow, and I whirled around, fists clenched to do battle. When the light faded, a massive figure was standing - no, hovering in front of us. Long blond hair, a blue dress that seemed to fade into light... She was unnatural. "Damn, she's tall," Klein muttered. Really, Klein? That's the first thing you notice? Not the way she just appeared out of nowhere, or the floating ring around her?

"Greetings," the woman spoke. "I am Urd, Queen of the Lake." I recognized that name, and tried to figure out why, but she was still talking. "You have bonded with my kinsmen, and I am grateful. My two younger sisters and I have spoken at length, and we have a request for you." Two sisters? I paled suddenly and stepped back, stumbling against Leafa without even realizing it. Oh, shit. She's one of the Norns. I knew I recognized the name Urd. Rulers of destiny of men and gods alike. So, the bigshots, like Odin and Thor? She was the Norn of the Past, and she was present when they were born. Fuck fuck fuck I cannot deal with gods right now. "If you would be so kind, we ask that you save our lands from the Frost Giants." Fuuuuuuuuck. Frost Giants are bad. I remember reading about them while I was studying the lore of the game, and I was not happy to learn about the bastards. The jotunns actually were supposed to live in Jotunheimr, so I wasn't sure why we needed to save Tonkii and apparently _the Norns_ from an invasion, but whatever. Just a game, Rythin, relax.

"Dad," Din hissed, floating over to hover by my shoulder. "Urd is an NPC. She's connected to Cardinal's speech engine, just like I am. Or, was, before you gave me my own dictionary? Whatever."

I blinked and looked at him, careful not to let Urd out of my sight. "So, what? She's an AI?" Beside me, I could hear Kirito having the same discussion with Yui.

"Exactly," Din nodded. "And that might be bad."

I was going to ask how, but Urd was talking again. "In the past," she said, closing her eyes, "Jotunheimr was similar to your Alfheim." She waved a hand, and I _saw_ the world changing; and that almost made me terrified, because she was so powerful she could force us to see illusions with just the wave of her hand. I hate seeing things that are so far out of my range. That did, however, make it all the sweeter when I got to kill them eventually. Usually. "Covered in lush green woods and beautiful lakes, it basked in the blessings of Yggdrasil, the World Tree. We, the Hill Giants, lived in peace and harmony with the creatures." So Tonkii was one of the Hill Giants? Or was he one of the creatures and Urd was the Hill Giant? Eh. Dunno, don't care. "Far below the splendor of Jotunheimr is a realm of ice and snow known as Niflheim." That one I vaguely remember. It's supposed to be the place for the non-heroes, right? The goddess Hel ruled it or something? "Thrym, King of the Frost Giants, rules that land." Okay, guess not. Seems like everybody got shifted around a bit. Then again, if that means we don't have to interact with the pantheon I'm all for it - from what I could tell, the Norse gods were dicks. That being said, if I ever get raven familiars for whatever reason I'm totally naming them Huginn and Muninn. "He shattered our peace by casting Excalibur, the sword that slices through wood and iron, into the Well of Urd, the heart of our land." Argh argh argh and now we're drawing European myth into this? That's not... And the wood and iron thing was just an etymology error! I was twitching slightly and Leafa patted my shoulder gently. I can't help it, sis, I happen to like mythology. "It severed the thickest roots of our World Tree. In an instant, Jotunheimr lost the blessings it received from Yggdrasil." Urd waved her other hand, and we watched; watched as the water from the Well of Urd crystallized rapidly into ice, the cold spreading like a plague. The roots of the World Tree then slowly lifted, dragging the totally frozen well with it - and my head whipped over to the inverted pyramid as I realized exactly what it was. That was the frozen Well of Urd, floating in the sky. Shit.

"I was right," Kirito whispered. "Excalibur."

"Under Thrym's command," Urd continued, "the Frost Giants marched on Jotunheimr and overwhelmed our defenses. Their fortresses and castles soon blighted our land, and scores of my people were captured and imprisoned." She seemed sorrowful. "Once they seized control they built Thrymheim, their largest castle, atop the mass of ice once known as the Well of Urd." I knew it, I knew it, I knew it! "During the chaos, my sisters and I escaped to the bottom of a frozen lake. However, we no longer have the power we once had." I blinked. So there's the rub, why she needs Fae agents to act in her stead. "The Frost Giants are not satisfied with their spoils. They wish to annihilate our kin, the creatures that populate our realm." She turned grim - though to be entirely fair I was basing this on minute shifts in her voice because her face was expressionless. "If they succeed, my powers will be extinguished, and Thrymheim will rise to the next world. Your world. Alfheim."

"Bwah- Hold the phone!" Klein shouted. "You're telling us that once they're done here, they're gonna go up and destroy Arun?!"

"Yes, that is their intention," Urd said, and I realized yes she was emoting, just very little. Her eyes looked sad now. "King Thrym will seal Alfheim in ice and continue on until he reaches the top of Yggdrasil. Once he reaches it, he will take the golden apple growing there."

We all stared at her, stunned by the news. I paled, suddenly feeling the image click into place and affording an all-too-terrifying view of what would happen when he did. "Oh shit shit shit Ragnarok shit Ragnarok fuck fuck fuck," I babbled. Beside me, Leafa stiffened and I knew she had realized just what the end state of this mission would be if we failed.

"Thrym and his general have grown frustrated by the time it is taking to wipe out my kinfolk," Urd said. "So they have turned to your people, the fairies, for assistance in their murderous plot. Your kind hunts our kinfolk to extinction, lured by the offer of Excalibur as a reward. However, King Thrym cannot bestow that sword unto others, for if Excalibur ever leaves Thrymheim, the blessings of Yggdrasil will return to this land and their castle shall vanish as a mist upon a meadow." I blinked, trying to unravel the flowery simile. ...So it'll disappear once we snag Excalibur, got it.

"Bu-But," Liz stammered, "then, what kind of quest is it when the reward for it is a total lie?" Not gonna say I told you so, but I so called it. "How's he gonna get away with it?"

"Most likely," Urd said, bowing her head slightly, "he will award the victor a sword called Caliburn, whose appearance is identical to Excalibur." I twitched again; they're the same sword! Literally the same sword! Not identical in appearance, not similar, they're the exact same thing!

"But, that's cheating!" Leafa shouted, clenching a fist. "If he's a king, doesn't he have a code of honor?" _These are the signs of the king honor-broke. Pride coming first o'er all._

Urd slowly shook her head. "Unfortunately, cheating and falsehoods are Thrym's most powerful assets."

I sighed. "So nobody expects the Frost Giant Inquisition, and when they follow orders he gives the winner Excalipoor and then takes over Alfheim. Yeah, I can see why this would be a bad thing. Are we, to use a common phrase, totally fucked?"

"Gods damn it, Ry," Argo muttered, hitting her forehead with the palm of her hand. "Excalipoor? Really?" What can I say, I have a way with words.

Urd's lips twitched slightly. "Thrym has made one great mistake. In his eagerness to slaughter my kin, he has sent a number of his giants down from Thrymheim to marshal your kind for battle. At this moment, the defenses of his castle are weaker than they have ever been." Ah. So we're sneaking in the back while his guards are away, stabbing the shit out of King Thrym, and grabbing Excalibur. Sounds like a plan.

"There's our shot," Kirito whispered. Seems like he figured it out as well.

Urd raised her hand, and a sound like a clanging bell rang out as a ball of light appeared in her hand. It floated over to us, and flashed, revealing a pendant of gold, with an emerald set in the center. "Once the stone in the amulet turns black," Urd said as the pendant lowered down to fall gently into Leafa's hands, "it will mean all my kinfolk have been slain." Asuna and Sinon leaned over to stare at it in interest. "And my powers have left me." She waved her hand toward the upside-down pyramid. "Good fairies, infiltrate Thrymheim, remove Excalibur from its plinth, and save my realm." With a beep, a panel appeared above her head informing us that we had all accepted the quest. A second later, another, smaller screen appeared in front of us, informing us that we had just accepted the quest 'Holy Sword of the Frozen Palace'. Sure, we'll help you out, Urd. I grinned; it'd been a while since I tried to kill a king or god. I think the last one was Kraken? And that didn't exactly end too well. "I am counting on you, good fairies," Urd said before smiling and disappearing in a flash of light. A second later, Tonkii started flying toward the castle in the sky again, and we were on our way.

A somber silence hovered over the party as we all tried to figure out what exactly was happening. Well, while the others did that and I was trying to come to grips with the fact that _Ragnarok_ was going to happen if we didn't do this. "This is turning into a bigger deal than we thought," Asuna murmured.

"Is...this still considered a quest?" Sinon asked carefully. She'd probably never dealt with anything like it before - though, to be fair, neither had we, we were just slightly better about rolling with the punches. "'Cause it's kinda... turned into something way more epic than a plain old quest. You heard her, she said if the creatures in this world get killed off, the Frost Giants'll take over the surface next." I shuddered slightly, trying to stare at Thrymheim to distract myself. The bottom part of the pyramid was translucent and I could see a gold gleam, just like Kirito had said; as we rose, I took in the design marking the sides of the pyramid. It was like an upside-down cross, or a sword or something. Probably Norse symbology or something like that.

"Yeah, I know," Kirito said. "But I doubt the admins would let that happen without some kind of update, or warning, or something. I mean, normally, they'd let players know a week ahead of time."

I glanced at Din, but he and Yui were hovering off to the side, whispering about something, and I didn't pry. "Whatever," Leafa said, holding the pendant in her hand. "We're gonna finish this quest for Tonkii. Right, Kazuto?"

My friend nodded in determination. "You know it," he said. "We were gonna storm the castle and grab Excalibur anyway. It'll be easy if the castle's defenses are down. Helping Tonkii and his friends out? That's a bonus." He swiped open his menu and tapped a few buttons; with a shimmer, his second sword came into being strapped onto his back, and I grinned.

Klein's katana rasped out of its sheath with a ring of steel. "Here we go, guys!" he said, pointing his blade at the frozen palace. "Our last big quest of the year! Let's do this thing and score us a front page on MMO Tomorrow!"

"Yeah!" we all chorused, our weapons making a pyramid of metal to rival Thrymheim. Thrym was fucked.

Tonkii purr-roared as he hovered in front of a ledge that clearly led into the depths of Thrymheim - the gigantic door was kind of a giveaway. "Don't you worry, Tonkii," Leafa said, giving Tonkii an affectionate pat, "we'll get your home back for you. It'll be good as new, promise!"

I glanced around at the others, sizing them up; Silica and Sinon were looking grim, Klein and Liz almost amused. Asuna and Leafa had their jaws set and I knew Argo and I were ready for anything. I glanced back at Kirito, and grinned at him; he had his game face on. "Here we go," he said, grinning in determination. Right, just gonna infiltrate a castle of ice and snow, beat the crap out of anyone and anything in our way, kill a god-king, and then steal a mythical sword that can cut through anything, all on a strict time limit.

I cracked my knuckles. And here was me thinking this was going to be hard.

* * *

 **Soooooo, we've entered the Calibur arc! Cool!**

 **Interestingly enough, when watching the episode I was amused to hear Kirito say 'Seven others', rather than 'five others'. Hooray for dub errors. It's like the fanfic gods are smiling upon me! Now, if only I could get the** _ **good**_ **fanfic gods to do so as well, then we might be getting somewhere. Ah well, y'all will have to settle for my usual dreck.**

 **Quick mythology run-down for those interested: Jotunheimr is the land of the Frost Giants, the Jotunn. They're led by King Thrym. Below that (apparently) we have Niflheim, land of cold; that place is ruled by Hel, one of Loki's daughters and patron saint, as it were, of those that died without honor or glory. Think sickness, accidents, etc. Below** _ **that**_ **we have Muspelheim, land of heat; that place is basically fire all day every day. Creation started when the rivers of Niflheim met the flames of Muspelheim and turned to the steam of, well, Creation. Kinda neat.**

 **Ragnarok is a BIG event – it's literally the end of the world. Basically, Nidhoggr chews through the roots of the World Tree, toppling it, and then shit gets serious; Thor and Jormungandr (the World Serpent, also known as Midgardsormr, the Midgard Serpent) exchange kills, Odin dies at the jaws of Fenrir and the overgrown puppy then gets its head ripped apart, Loki gets murdered by Heimdall but gets a mortal blow as well… Basically, all the gods die and everything else dies too before the entire world gets swallowed up by the Void. It's part of the cycle; eventually, the Earth reappears and we go back to business as usual – humanity has another one of those Adam & Eve inbreeding sessions, the gods that didn't die come back, hooray.**

 **Excalibur is the sword of kings, also known as Caliburn (no matter what the quest says, they're the same thing), Caledbolg, so on and so forth. Basically the most well-known European sword. In the original legend, it could cut through anything and the person wielding its scabbard was immortal. Kinda neat. The scabbard doesn't have a name in mythology, at least that I could find, but people tend to call it Avalon these days (stupid Saber. Avalon is the land of the Fae! Though, it works I guess.)**

 **Also, for those of you who know stuff about ritualized combat (also known as sparring) don't try it at home. The ONLY reason Nick's cool with sparring against Sugu is because a) he's a violent nutjob b) he's got protective equipment on and c) Sugu is a well-trained kendo practitioner and knows how to pull her blows to avoid hurting him. Fighting barehanded against a weapon is ALWAYS a bad idea, which is why if you get mugged the suggested course of action is to just give them what they want and not do anything stupid like try to wrestle for the knife or gun or whatever. So when it comes to fighting a kendo practitioner with your bare fists, don't do this cool thing at home, no matter what. Got it? Good.**

 **Many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.**


	15. Thrymheim

**Chapter 15: Thrymheim**

* * *

 **December 28** **th** **, 2025**

As Tonkii hovered in front of the loading dock, I looked around, going over what we had just learned.

First, shit be fucked. Second, shit definitely be fucked. Third, shit gonna be more fucked if we don't kill Thrym before time runs out. ...And, that's pretty much it. Get down there, murder a god-king, steal Excalibur, and then get out of Dodge before any other bad things happen, all on a pretty tight timer, if the speed of those explosions earlier was any indication.

I caught Argo's eye and she grinned, raising her arms over her head and stretching. Yeah, like this was gonna be hard in the slightest.

Hell, a good old-fashioned dungeon crawl could be just the thing to de-stress. I wasn't stupid; I knew my mental state right now was fucked and it was going to stay fucked for a bit. This might help a bit, since it's time I get to spend with my friends and my family.

I wasn't the last one to jump off of Tonkii onto the ice ledge - that honor went to Kirito - and I marveled at the texture underneath my feet. It felt so smooth that it could have been marble, but it wasn't slippery in the slightest. Cold, yes, as I found out when I knelt down and touched it gingerly before hissing at the cold and drawing my hand away, but not slippery. Excellent; I hate ice levels for that reason. Eventually, we were all off of the flying jellephant and standing in front of the gigantic door that had been carved into the ice; it felt like the boss doors in New Aincrad, almost. I liked the feeling - it got my blood pumping and ready to fight. Everyone was strangely quiet, even Klein - but the quietest one of all was Yui, the adorable little sweetheart just sitting on Kirito's shoulders, hands in her lap. "What's wrong, Yui?" Kirito asked after a second.

She took a deep breath before lifting off of his shoulder and hovering in front of the group. To my surprise, Din lifted off of Argo's shoulder and joined her. "Din and I talked about it," Yui said, "and we have the feeling there's a lot more at stake here than we think." Everyone gave her their attention without hesitating. "This will require some explaining."

"All VRMMOs originate from the Seed program released to the web at the beginning of this year," Din said, folding his arms behind his back. "However, Alfheim Online's source code has several major differences to the code of the Seed. For the majority of the games created with the Seed," he said, "a stripped-down version of the Cardinal system is used to run them. The system running Alfheim, however, is a copy of the full version that ran Sword Art Online, all the bells and whistles attached." Made sense; that was how RECT was running it, so why try to fix what isn't broken? It also explained how Din was actually able to run with the same amount of power as Yui, since they were both designed for Sword Art Online, kinda.

Wait. What were we missing? Sword Skills and things like that were just plugins that we could add or remove to change how the gameplay worked. "Full version?" Kirito asked, probably thinking the same thing.

"The original Cardinal system," Yui told us, "had a feature which could automatically generate quests. It would log onto the net, and search for various legends and folklore from around the world. Then it would take the stories it found, adapt the data, and use it to generate an infinite number of quests." So... Things like special dungeons only appearing on Friday the 13th, or on Halloween? Things like that were created on the fly by Cardinal? Huh. That's actually pretty neat, and come to think of it that's probably how Din does his own searching, just tapping into the search protocols Cardinal uses. Not exactly what I intended, but fuck it we'll roll with this.

"What about this quest, then?" I asked the two pixies. "Din, you mentioned that Urd was plugged into the system's language module, or something like that. That means this quest is one of those generated quests, right?"

My kid nodded. "When Yui and I saw how the NPC was acting, we had a feeling this was a Cardinal-generated quest rather than one designed by the creators. If that is the case, here, then no matter what we do this quest will end the same way as in the legend used to create it." I froze. Oh. Ohhhh, fuck everything. While my mind tried to reboot, Din continued, "I've pulled the relevant data, and taking into account the mythology the setting is based on - Norse, if you're wondering - the likely outcome of the quest is a, ah... final war style event."

"The Frost Giants from Jotunheimr and Niflheim aren't the only ones that want to attack Arun," Yui added. "Below Niflheim is a fiery realm called Muspelheim, where the flame giants live. According to the myth, they will attack the World Tree and burn it to the ground."

Leafa paled and looked at me in horror; I had the feeling my own expression wasn't all sunshine and rainbows either. "Ragnarok," she whispered, "the Twilight of the Gods." She was shaking slightly. "Uh-uh, I don't buy it. I can't believe that this game would destroy its own maps on purpose."

"For those -" I paused and licked my lips before swallowing, trying to moisten my suddenly dry throat. "For those who don't know their Norse mythology, Ragnarok is literally the end of the world. Yggdrasil burns to the ground and then all of Creation is swallowed up into the void." It should theoretically come back, but I'd rather not risk total annihilation. I'm rather attached to my Dragontalons.

"It's gotta be a mistake!" Leafa exclaimed.

Sadly, Din and Yui shook their heads simultaneously. "I'm sorry," Yui said, "but there's no mistake about it. The Cardinal system has the authority to destroy its own maps if it wants." I frowned. I mean, I believe them, of course, since they were plugged into it, but destroying its own maps? That seems almost...like... I let out a sigh, remembering when I had seen a world destroy itself and crumble away. "We know this because the original Cardinal system's last task was destroying Aincrad, the floating castle of Sword Art Online."

I glanced at Kirito and Asuna; they remembered it too, it seemed, because they had both swallowed. "No way," Leafa whispered, staring but not seeing anything.

Asuna murmured something quietly, and everyone looked down, heads bowed. "There goes my blacksmith shop," Liz muttered. Pina let out a weak cry, probably picking up on Silica's distress.

"There go my chances of ever meetin' my soulmate," Klein muttered. Despite the somber atmosphere, I couldn't help but snort and shake my head. Trust him to get straight to the part that would never come true even if Alfheim stayed in one piece.

Wondering something, I glanced at Argo; she looked back at me with a steady gaze before reaching and grasping my hand. I laced my fingers with hers and squeezed gently. We'd be okay, even if Alfheim disappeared. We could save Yui and Din to the server, and then no matter where we went they'd be with us. And to be honest, our reality was with each other, not where we were, and though we had fun in Alfheim it wouldn't be the end of the world - heh, irony - if it were to disappear. Disappointing and a shame, yes, but not something we couldn't recover from.

Sinon brought a finger up to her chin and hummed thoughtfully. "Even if it all deletes," she said, "can't the server be rolled back to the way it was from one of the backups it's made?"

Din shook his head. "The Cardinal system does have an auto-backup feature, yes, so you'd think that would be the case. However, the backups only save player data in the event of a crash or error in the system, so that the players don't lose much, if anything." He sighed and spread his hands wide, miming helplessness. "The world of Alfheim is just too big to save the entirety of the map data. Any changes to the map data is permanent." So basically the programmers would have to either rebuild all of Alfheim Online's data from scratch, or they'd just give up and let it be. Given it took them a few months the first time, I can see why we'd have issues doing that.

Everyone mumbled some sort of realization as what he said sank in, and then we stood there in silence for a second. "Oh, I got it!" Klein exclaimed suddenly before swiping open his menu. After a second of navigating the menus, all of us watching him, he leaned back and grabbed at his head with his hands. "I don't got it," he sighed.

"You can say that again," Liz sniped.

"Stop razzin' me," he sighed. "I was tryin' to call a GM, to see if he knew about this. Ain't happenin' now, though. It's after hours, and support's closed." Has calling a GM to solve our problems ever worked? I don't really remember if it has. Most of the time I can just solve the problem myself.

"That figures," Kirito muttered, "it's Sunday afternoon just before New Years."

Leafa walked over to him. "Kazuto?" Kirito looked over at her to see what she needed, and she lifted the pendant around her neck; the glowing green gem had already started to blacken. "We're running out of time."

"Right," my friend sighed. Then he stared at the door, his eyes hard. "Let's hurry, and get to the last level."

"Right!" we all chorused. We'd be able to speed through most of the dungeon; after all, we were kinda badass.

As we entered the massive ice palace, I turned to Din. "Hey, kid, I'm sure you've already started doing this, but pull up as much data related to Thrymheim and Thrym as you can. I don't know if it'll be useful, but I'm not experiencing an information deficit ever again if I can help it."

Din nodded. "Working on it as we speak, Dad. After I pull the data, I'll be sorting through it. Problem is, I probably won't be of any use other than that for a while."

"No problem, Din, just ride with someone," I said. "Asuna? Do you have a shoulder Din could borrow?" My friend smiled and nodded, and Din hovered over before folding his wings and sitting cross-legged on her shoulder, eyes closed. "Thanks."

"No problem."

The first issue we encountered was that Thrymheim was a gigantic maze - and despite the fancy detail work and massive golden images almost carved into the wall that looked like eyes blinking, most of the passageways looked the same. We stood in front of a fork in the path, stymied; if we took the wrong path, it could be several minutes before we hit all the dead ends, and we were on a limit. Let's see, there should be an Illusion spell that could help with this... Fortunately, it's one of the ones I can cast, although it's expensive. Chanting the spell quickly, I snapped my fingers, and with a pale gray glow a small wisp appeared, hovering in midair. "Find the stairs to the next floor," I barked, and it split in two before heading down the two paths. "If it returns and disappears, it's the dead end," I said. "Will o' the Wisp can be useful for more than just springing traps."

Yui hovered in the air. "I'm still working on getting the map data for Thrymheim," she told us. "Once I have it, I can navigate us through the maze easily."

"That would be great," Liz said with a smirk. "Because Rythin's magic pool is kinda wimpy, and he can't keep casting that spell." I casually flipped her off. "What? It's the truth!"

"Yeah, yeah," I rolled my eyes. "And you're so much better in that regard. Leafa's bigger than you, after all."

She crossed her arms over her chest, knowing exactly what double meaning those words held. "Shut up, Rythin."

"That's enough, you two," Asuna said, smiling calmly. The expression was totally at odds with the terrifying death aura she was giving off, and we both whimpered before shutting up. "Thank you. So, Kirito, do you think we'll make it in time?" One would think we'd learn not to joke around with each other in front of Asuna. One would be wrong, of course, but one would think that.

Kirito was staring off into the distance. "Yeah," he said finally. "We just need to hurry."

A few seconds later, my wisp that had shot off down the left path returned and disappeared with a small muted flash of light. "Right, then, let's get going!" Klein cheered, leading the charge down the right path.

"Klein, you -" I sighed, he was already gone and the others were following him. "Argh... I hate you all." Jerks, leaving me behind like that.

When I caught up to them, Sinon gave me an aside glance. "Glad you could join us."

"Bite me, kitty-cat." She bared her fangs, but I could tell she wasn't actually going to follow through with my offer. "Yui?" I called out. "Progress on the map data?"

"I've got it!" she said from where she was leading Klein and Kirito, the fore-runners. "We're almost to the boss room on this floor!"

I blinked. "That was quick."

Beside me, Argo snickered. "Yeah, and it'll just keep getting faster as we go down. Pyramid, remember?" I grunted something about geometry being a terrible horrible class and grinned at her. Suddenly, we spilled out into a large open room, a gigantic monster lying in wait with a massive studded club lying against the wall next to it. Behind the cyclops was a door, carved to resemble the one leading into Thrymheim in the first place.

"A cyclops, huh?" Sinon muttered. I grinned; this's gonna be good.

"As you might have guessed," I told her, "weak spot's the eye. Have fun!" She was a member of Trinity; she wouldn't let me down.

We stepped forward, forming ranks around her; as we entered the room, the cyclops's single eye rotated and locked on us. "Hey!" Silica shouted. "Let us through or you'll be sorry!" The cyclops just rumbled a strange almost chuckle and reached over to grab its club. "Well, I tried," she said, sighing and shaking her head. Pina crooned something.

As soon as the cyclops's health bars had filled, we all stepped aside; Sinon already had her bowstring drawn back and aimed directly at the very large eye. "One shot, one kill," I heard her whisper, before letting out a long breath, hesitating, then releasing. While the first arrow was still in flight, she had already drawn another and loosed it. I watched with lackadaisical amusement as they both slammed into the cyclops's pupil, wincing slightly at the wet sound. Erg. Better him than me, though.

The cyclops roared in pain, swatting at the arrows currently sticking out of its eye with its free hand while flailing wildly with the club still clutched in its other hand. I smirked, trying my best to silence that little primal part of me that was screaming in horrified terror at the sight of Sinon's arrows slamming into the thing's eyes. Seriously, stay away from my eyes, that's why I don't wear contacts. "Looks like we figured out who Nobody is," I said, already moving towards the end of the club, Future Step blazing in my eyes. "It's Sinon!" With a grunt, I angled myself towards where the club was about to be and jumped, flipping in midair; my legs landed lightly on top of the club a second after it smashed into the ice before being thrown up again as the club lifted under my feet. Laughing gleefully, I spun in the air before drawing my knife and slicing down his chest, leaving a sickly green mark down the entirety of its body. "Woo!"

"Hey Rythin, leave some for the rest of us!" Liz called, smashing her mace into the cyclops's club arm, making it bend strangely. "You can't have all the fun!"

I shifted, weaving through the increasingly erratic patterns of blows with ease. "But this is what I live for!" I growled, my voice dark with bloodlust as a slasher smile stretched across my face. "The tempo of battle sings in my blood!" Blood for the blood god! This floor shall be stained black with the blood of my foes! Never mind that they don't actually have blood!

"Aaand, we've lost him," Klein muttered to Silica as they left a series of slashes across the monster's body.

There was a distinct popping sound about a meter in front of me. "Aaaahahahahahhahahah!" Oh hey I think that snapping sound was my sanity! Or maybe its femur. Because I just snapped its femur with a heavy blow.

"Pina, go whack him, will you?" Silica called out. A second later, a heavy weight settled on my head, and I paused, looking up at Pina. She cried at me before swatting me with one of her wings. "Thanks!"

I coughed, shaking my head. "Right, I'm back in control," I said, dancing through the blows and falling back to the ranged group, Asuna and Sinon. "So, how's things?" I asked casually, as though catching up over coffee or tea or some other drink.

Asuna finished chanting and with a wave of her wand healed Leafa; the blonde had gotten nicked by one of the swings and had been sent flying, but as her health recovered she shouted a quick thanks to Asuna and charged back into battle. I watched as she gave Argo a boost, sending my fellow Cait Sith into the air before striking the cyclops with a series of blows that I remembered painfully from this morning. Argo, while descending, pulled a similar trick as me; the blades on her arm slid forward and stabbed into the cyclops's shoulder before jumping away as it raised an arm to swat at the gnat biting at it. "Not bad," the Undine said, studying the battlefield with a critical eye. "I think we can handle ourselves, Rythin. No need to hang back and cover us."

I grinned, my eyes shining with red fury. "You're the best, Asuna, love you!" With a laugh I charged forward, stopping as I watched the others fall back from a wild spin the cyclops had just made. Excellent - time for me to have some fun. I sheathed my knife and swung my left foot back, shifting all of my weight to that foot. As my fists started glowing, I chuckled. "You're fucked." With a shout, I released and let the system take over; immediately, I dashed forward with a push, slamming my right fist into its stomach. I flowed into a spin and left roundhouse kick, slamming it into the cyclops's kneecap, likely shattering it if this game tracked actual bone damage. Setting down, I slammed my left elbow into its gut, forcing it to bend over around the strike. My hand was perfectly situated to draw my knife and I did, using it to guard as I spun right into a right sidekick, striking the other knee. The cyclops was off balance, and my uppercut with all my weight behind it actually knocked it into the air; I jumped, spinning before slamming my right heel into the cyclops with all the weight and torque of my body behind the blow. The cyclops slammed into the ground, cracking the ice underneath it, and I struck with a slash of my dagger, landing in a crouch. As I spun, flowing with the movement, the line exploded with a dark flash - the final Sword Skill had the Darkness element to it, and it had some flashy effects. As I laughed madly, forced to be frozen in place from the lag-time on the Sword Skill, the cyclops shattered with the sound of snapping ice. "That was fun!"

The others joined me, and when I could move again I sheathed my knife before rolling my shoulders and cracking my neck. "That was pretty neat," Kirito said.

"It's his OSS," Argo said, hanging on my shoulder and giving me a hug. "Murderous Fang."

I nodded. "Probably could be better, but it's what I'm using now."

Klein whistled. "Takes a lot to make one of those." He turned to Kirito and Asuna. "You two have one, right?"

"Yeah," Kirito said, grinning. "I've actually been -"

"Ah-bup-bup-up," I said, interrupting him, "I know you, and we're on a time limit. We can talk shop after we've saved Alfheim. Let's get going."

Leafa gave Kirito a stern look. "Nick's right, Kazuto. We don't have much time left."

"Fine, fine," he said, giving Klein a look that very clearly said 'We'll talk about it later'. Klein grinned and gave him a thumbs up. "Okay, Yui, guide us through the second floor!"

The second floor was smaller than the first; a gods-send, really, since that meant the next floors would be even smaller and we'd be able to speed through them. With Yui guiding us, we were able to navigate unerringly; despite all the twists and turns, we followed Yui without hesitating, and we were rewarded by never reaching a dead end or having to turn back. Eventually, we came upon the door to the boss room and pushed it open; we were greeted by two minotaurs, one black and one gold. They had little ridges on their bodies that were the opposite color - kinda cool, actually. A twin fight? Weird. Usually there's only one boss per room. Must have some gimmick to them, then...

As we fought, the 'gimmick', as it was, became very clear; they only fought one at a time, while the one that wasn't fighting meditated in front of the doorway to the exit. The black minotaur fought us first, and we carved it up like a turkey without really breaking a sweat. Klein acted as tank and made sure its blows couldn't hurt us, while the rest of us struck at it and chewed through its health in no time flat. However, when it reached half health, the gold minotaur stood up and grabbed its gigantic axe before switching out with the injured one. It roared, and we roared back; it slammed its axe down, only for Klein to knock it away with a strong slash. While he kept it busy, Leafa and Kirito sliced out at it - Leafa opened up a gash on its leg, before they both attacked at the same time with shouts, Kirito striking its chest and Leafa its back. Kirito slid back from the strength of his blows, and I glanced at the boss's health bar only to swear. It had barely budged. "Damn it," he muttered.

I looked at the other minotaur and swore again; a green aura had surrounded it, and its health was already back to full. Fucking hell. So one's all but immune to physical, and the other probably magical. So when they get too damaged, they switch out and heal. So we need to find a way to do magical damage to the gold one, and fast enough that it can't switch. Sinon pulled her bowstring back and launched an arrow at the healing minotaur, but the gold one reached out a palm and intercepted the arrow, crushing it with ease. "Agh, damn!" Sinon swore, and I fell back to join her and Asuna.

"This isn't looking good!" Leafa shouted as the gold minotaur roared at them. No, you think? "The gold one's tough! Nothing we do is slowing him down!"

"Yeah," Kirito gasped.

"This sucks!" Klein growled. "If we only had a mage that could cast attack spells in our party. Rythin?"

"Can't do anything!" I shouted. "Most of my magic is specialized towards infiltration. Traps and stuff! I have fireballs, but they're weak as hell!"

Liz sighed, slumping over. "This is hilarious," she muttered in a not-very-amused voice. "First Klein refuses to learn magic, and now he wants it?" She shook her head, eyes flat. "It wouldn't help anyway, because the dude with the high magic resistance in the back would just move up. Could this get any tougher?"

You idiot, why would you say that?! The gold minotaur grasped its axe with both hands, and the blade started glowing yellow and crackling with electricity. "Shockwave attack coming up in three...two...one!" Yui shouted, flying to safety. Immediately, we scattered, and I danced to the side as the shockwave blew past me before slamming into the wall. Liz used her shield to block most of the flying debris, and Silica covered Pina with her own body; the rest of us were far enough away from the blast that we weren't hurt too badly. I glanced at the health bars; not too badly, in this instance, means that nobody had died. Asuna, Sinon and I still had health in the green - mine was a little lower because I had gotten physical earlier, but still.

"Þeír fylla heilagr austr, brott svalr bani!" Asuna chanted, flicking her wand out to the side and healing everyone back to full. I sighed with relief; no wipes today. The gold minotaur didn't wait; it immediately charged, roaring. "Kirito!" Kirito blocked the heavy axe slam by crossing his blades and standing under the force of the blow. "I've only got about two and a half more minutes before I'm out of MP!"

"'Kay!" he grunted.

"Kazuto," Leafa said, staring at the pendant, "more than two thirds of this medallion's gone dark." Kirito was still struggling with the blade, his arms trembling under the strain. "If we die now, we won't have time to start over from the spawn point!"

"Thanks," Kirito gasped. "Good to know!" He looked over his shoulder. "Hey guys, there's one thing we haven't tried yet!"

"My throwing knives?" A second later, a fire-element knife streaked through the air before exploding against the monster's upper arm, knocking it away and making it howl in rage. Tsk... I was aiming for the throat. As its health drained by a good chunk, I grinned. "Well, how about that." Instantly, there were three other knives in my hand. "He's weak to elemental strikes." I frowned. "But I can't kill it fast enough and the black one will switch out. After that, I'm boned when I run out of throwing knives."

"If we use Sword Skills with magic, we might be able to do some damage to this gold bastard!" Kirito shouted. "Gonna leave you wide open, though." I figured I'd sit back and watch; most of my Martial Arts skills were elementless, the dagger didn't do much damage, and I didn't want to accidentally hit one of them with a throwing knife. "It's do or die time, so what do you say we focus our attacks and wipe him out?!"

Klein swung his katana through the air. "Hell yeah! Just say the word and his ass is grass!" The others all brought their weapons to bear; Leafa with her katana, Liz and her mace, and Silica with her dagger.

"I'll coordinate," I called. "Silica, bubble spell!"

"Right!" she shouted.

The gold minotaur finished roaring in agony, and prepared to strike. "Ready, and... now!" I shouted. With a shouted command, Silica ordered Pina to use her bubble breath attack; the stream of bubbles interrupted the gold minotaur's attack and left it stunned and dazed, a perfect target. "Fire at will! Use weaker strikes with shorter cooldowns!" As their blades glowed brilliant colors, they charged. With a shout, Klein's sword burst into flame and he leapt into the air, striking its left shoulder; Leafa followed a second later, her katana cleaving into it with blades of wind. Liz struck its kneecap with an electrified mace, and Argo stabbed the other one, her blade suddenly forming into a stone spike before shattering; in the air, Silica spun her knife before plunging the blade of ice into its back. Beside me, Sinon took aim and fired an arrow that struck the minotaur on its chin. That just left Kirito; with a shout, he thrust forward repeatedly with his blade of fire, then finished the combo with an exploding downward slash that led back into an upward slash. Heh... That was the attack that killed Illfang, way back when. It was more advanced now, though, because he was able to add another strike down; he landed on the ground and a vortex of fire rose around him and the gold minotaur. Everyone was frozen from the Sword Skills, and as the flames cleared I could see the gold minotaur, injured but still standing; its health was only at yellow.

"Kirito!" Klein shouted, then grimaced as his body refused to follow his commands. "We locked up!"

Kirito's flaming sword flickered, and then died out. "This is it!" he gasped. Suddenly - oh what the fuck is this how is he using an attack with his _second fucking sword_?! Dual Blades doesn't exist here! Even an OSS could only use the one weapon, and mine only worked because of the Martial Arts skills used as linkers. As all of us gaped at him, amazed, he swung, cutting into the gold minotaur's side; after it reached the halfway mark, he turned the blade and thrust forward; a huge pillar of ice erupted out of the minotaur's back before shattering, knocking it back slightly. With a shout, he turned and swung out, cutting through the minotaur's chest and leaving another trail of ice as he freed his blade. He gritted his teeth and tensed, and his black blade started glowing red again. Fucking hell.

The others suddenly relaxed as their bodies were released; their attack stun had ended. "Again!" I snapped. Kirito opened up with a familiar, four-strike pattern that ended with a square-shaped area of effect elemental strike, and knocked the gold minotaur away. He put his sword behind his back and the other one started glowing; he could wait, however, because the others were there. Klein charged in first, striking with one of the strongest strikes of the katana, the Iai Strike; the gold minotaur's body seemed to separate before snapping back instantly, the cut exploding into flames as Klein sheathed his katana. When the flames cleared, Leafa was there with a wind-element attack, carving an X across its chest. Silica leapt up after that, slicing at the minotaur's throat with her knife, and Argo followed that up, lunging forward and stabbing it in the shoulder with her wrist-mounted blade. The shadows around the wound seemed to writhe before spreading out and slicing into its flesh in a star-shaped pattern. As the minotaur threw its head back to roar, Liz was falling and smashed it across the nose with her electrified mace. Sinon raced forward, jumping and using her Cait Sith-enhanced reflexes to jump off of the minotaur's raised knee and swing around its arm to land on its back before shooting an arrow straight through its chest, causing another ice pillar to erupt. As the ice shattered and Sinon jumped clear, Kirito charged with his favorite skill, Vorpal Strike - the flaming blade caught the monster dead in the chest, and after a moment's pause a column of flame exploded out from the impact point, roasting the minotaur. Kirito tensed, then, and I knew he had run out of surprises - he was frozen, just like the others.

I watched with bated breath as the health plummeted, and then swore very loudly when it stopped with just a sliver left. Piece of shit boss just fucking DIE already! I had my knife in my hand, but it was far away and I wasn't a great shot at the best of times - if I missed, I'd either do no damage or worse, hit Kirito or the others. If only Sinon were here I'd give it to her, but she had participated in the attack. Fuck. The minotaur reared back, its lips curling in something resembling a smile, and I gritted my teeth. Fuck! As it raised its arm over its head, preparing to cut down Kirito, I hissed in anger. Fuck! Fuck! Fu-

A blur like a shooting star shot past me and Asuna was there just before the axe came down on Kirito; she stabbed at it with her brilliant blade five times, and then landed before stabbing it one last time. The stabs formed a cross pattern - Neutron, one of her stronger skills. A blinding light erupted from the ground, enveloping the minotaur, and I laughed wildly. The Berserk Healer strikes again! The light died and the health drained; as the gold minotaur shuddered, the black one's eyes gleamed. It grabbed its axe and drew itself to its full height, laughing as it stared down Asuna; it drew back its axe, ready to smash her.

And then the gold minotaur shattered.

The black one froze, the smile wiped off of its face. It lowered its axe, looking around; everyone had surrounded it, smiling confidently. This one was weak to physical damage, and I cracked my knuckles. I wanted a shot at the bastard too. "Aw, we killed your pal," Klein taunted. He grinned. "Too bad... for you."

I clenched my fists and the Dragontalons came free. I laughed madly. "Prepare for pain."

After we cut it into several hundred pieces, I think it cried as it exploded into polygons. Almost embarrassing, really. If it weren't so hilarious. Screw you, physical-defense jerks. As the Congratulations screen appeared, letting us know that we won the fight, we all celebrated a victory well-earned.

Sinon relaxed her bowstring and sighed, while the rest of us sheathed our weapons. "Okay," Klein said, approaching Kirito, "what the _hell_ was that move you just pulled?!" I'm getting deja vu. Only this time, I didn't have to worry about hiding Future Step, so I could enjoy watching Kirito squirm.

"You...don't wanna know," he said.

"Oh come on!" Klein exclaimed, pointing a finger in Kirito's face. "That was totally a new skill!"

"Well, it's not really a skill," Kirito said, slapping Klein's hand away. "It's Skill Connect." Wha.

"Skill Connect?" Yeah, I'm with you there, Klein. What the hells was that? And why didn't I know about it? For that matter, why didn't _Argo_ know about it? She was just as stunned as the rest of us.

"Remember the last update?" Kirito asked. "You know it brought a bunch of Sword Skills to ALO, right? Well, even though we got those, we didn't get Unique Skills like Dual Wielding or the Divine Blade."

Everyone glanced at me, and I shrugged. "Before any of you say anything, Future Step isn't a Unique Skill. Just one that other people can't meet the prereqs for yet."

"Well hang on a sec," Klein said, turning back to Kirito. "You were dual wielding just now!"

Argo popped up behind him and hung her arms over his shoulder, draping herself on him. "C'mon, Kirito, spill!" she said. "I wanna know how you did that!"

He staggered under her weight slightly, but rallied. "Technically, that wasn't dual wielding." We all blinked, staring at him. "I was using One-handed Sword Skills with each hand and alternating between them. If I'm lucky, I can keep it going without lag maybe... three or four times."

The girls all gasped in awe at his skill, and Argo shook her head. "You must have a tiny window to pull that off. You and your stupid reflexes..."

Asuna was off to the side, pressing a forefinger to her temple and shaking her head. Yui looked over and made a sound of concern, and Asuna sighed. "No, it's nothing, Yui," she said. "Just deja vu, is all."

I grinned. "You, too? It's different to be on the outside, this time."

"I'm pretty sure they had the exact same exchange last time, too, when he beat the Gleam Eyes," she sighed. "Honestly..."

Kirito walked over and patted her on the back. "Don't pop a blood vessel." Leaving his hand on her shoulder gently, he turned to the others. "Okay, we can't stand around chattin' all day. Leafa? How much time we got left?"

Leafa pulled out her pendant, but I was distracted by Din stirring from Asuna's pocket and flying out to join us. She must have slipped him in there when she was going to fight, to keep him safe. "Dad?" he asked, landing on my shoulder. "I finished parsing the data."

"Excellent," I said. "I'm certain that'll come in handy. Good job, kid." He grinned at me and I nudged him with a finger, only to laugh when he nudged back.

"Yui," I tuned back in to hear Kirito ask, "do you know how big these last two floors are gonna be?"

"Yes," she said. "The third floor is about seventy percent the size of the second, and the fourth floor is pretty much just the boss room."

"I figure the last boss fight will take us about thirty minutes to finish," Kirito said, thumb and forefinger on his chin in thought.

"So we blitz through the third floor in a half hour?" I asked. "Hopefully, we won't run into any other issues like this one."

"That settles it," Liz said, and we all looked at her to see her grinning confidently, hands on her hips. "The clock's ticking, and the King of Giants is waiting! Let's get the lead out and kick his giant ass!" She slapped Kirito on the shoulder, and he toppled over, unprepared.

"Daddy!" Yui yelped, startled, before flying down to look at him with a worried expression.

I grinned at where my friend was lying flat on his back, spread-eagled. "You heard her," he said, picking himself up and brushing his coat off. "Soon as everyone's got their HP and MP restored, we'll hit that third floor!"

"Right!" we cheered.

The third floor was just as short as we expected it to be, and the boss was a pushover. Well, mostly; friendly fire was a bit of an issue. "Watch it!" I snapped, throwing myself to the ground as an insectoid leg whirled over my head, glancing at the ice door behind us where it had impaled itself several inches deep.

Argo grinned at me. "Sorry, Ry," she called before jumping away from the boss's return strike.

The boss was an insectoid creature, a cross between a human and a centipede; needless to say, I was staying far, far away from this and trying to pretend it didn't exist. It was feminine, if only because of the way its chitin formed around the chest area; it also had a giant fuck-off spear that it knew how to use. The floor was already smashed to bits from it slamming the glaive into the ground while trying to flatten us like the bug it was; the latest strike from it knocked Kirito, Leafa, and Klein away. They landed on their feet, but they were panting from exhaustion. The boss's health was low, and a good attack would kill it. Suddenly, it hissed, looking at Silica; the girl had been covered by the rubble. The Cait Sith dragon tamer let out a piercing whistle, and the centipede queen thing looked at her, only to be distracted by Pina flying towards her single red eye; with a shout, Silica dashed forward, slicing off the last of the queen's legs. She's come a surprisingly long way from the kid that Kirito and I saved back in Aincrad. Neat how people grow, really. The queen hissed in pain, and I lunged forward, jumping in the sky with my fists glowing. With a shout, I slammed down on its skull, cracking through the chitin. "Fuck you and your red brother," I growled. I... might still be holding a grudge against the Crawlerpede. Fuck that thing, by the way. It was a bitch.

The queen's tail was twitching madly, so I did my best to stare at anything else until the damn thing exploded into hundreds of tiny little not-buglike shards. Silica turned to give me a grin, and I grinned back. Kirito sheathed his swords before patting me on the shoulder. "C'mon, guys," he shouted. "The last boss is waiting!"

We ran forward, not waiting to refill our health or MP; we hadn't needed to use many healing spells that fight, or spells in general, actually. Looks like we're about to encounter Thrym - right on schedule, actually. We had about five minutes to spare, and knowing this game it wouldn't be easy to get to him.

We rounded a corner - by this point, Thrymheim had more or less given up on trying to be a maze and was just a straight shot to the end, though Klein, Kirito and I had outpaced the girls slightly - and Kirito gasped; a cage of ice was set in the wall. We came to a stop when we approached to see a woman sitting inside, her wrists bound by manacles of ice. She was pale and had long blonde hair; she wore something almost like those pendants the Lords wore. Was she a Lord of a race or something? As the girls caught up to us, Klein gasped in shock as he realized that there was a woman in a cage; his cheeks turned bright red, and I realized he was already infatuated. Give it until the second date, guy, c'mon now. The woman looked up at his gasp, and Kirito started to approach her. "Please," she begged, "help me." Her eyes were a bright green. "Let me out of here!"

Lovestruck and giggling like a loon, Klein staggered forward, obviously fully intending on freeing her. Casually, Kirito reached out and grabbed the tail end of Klein's bandana, bringing him to a screeching halt.

"It's a trap," he said.

"It's a trap," Liz said.

"It's _so_ a trap," Sinon added, arms folded.

"No way it isn't a trap," Argo said, snickering.

Klein jerked and looked at them in horror. "Well... Maybe it is." Then he looked at the woman with a dopey look on his face. "Maybe it isn't."

"What do you think, Yui?" Kirito asked.

"She's an NPC," the little nav pixie said. "Her core programming is connected to the Language Engine Module, just like Urd's." I see, so this woman's part of the quest, is it? "Although, there is one difference between them." I was staring at her, and I could see it - a bright green bar, hovering next to the woman as she stared at us, eyes shimmering. "This one has an HP gauge."

"Yeah, that's a big red flag," Kirito said. "If she's got an HP gauge, we might have to fight her."

"A trap," Asuna said calmly.

"Totally a trap," Silica added.

"Obviously a trap," Leafa snapped.

"Arrrroo!" Even Pina knew it was a trap.

"It might be a trap, it might not, I don't know," Kirito said. "But either way, we can't afford to take the chance." He reached out and laid a hand on Klein's shoulder. "We can't afford to waste any more time. We gotta get to Thrym ASAP."

Din tapped me on the shoulder. "Hey, Dad?" I looked over. "I was checking out the data in case something like this showed up, and, well..." He leaned over and whispered something in my ear. After a few seconds, I grinned widely before controlling myself and nodding thanks to Din.

"Oh, right," Klein was saying. "Yeah. We got a job to do." He looked at the ground, obviously unhappy with their decision.

As Kirito and the others raced past, the woman called out, "Do not leave me! Please! I beg you!"

I stopped by her cage. "Freya, right?" Shocked, she nodded. "Mm. And do you promise not to attack us if we let you out?" She nodded again, and I shrugged. "Okay, good enough for me. She checks out." Totally, hundred percent trustworthy. Because obviously an NPC wouldn't lie about not attacking us.

"Rythin, what are you doing?" Kirito asked, looking at me from down the hall.

"This is one hundred percent a trap," I said. "But we should spring it anyway."

"What?" Sinon asked me. "Are you stupid? I thought you couldn't be taken in by a pretty face."

I rolled my eyes. "I helped you out, didn't I?" I'm not sure if that was an insult or a compliment, and by the way she blinked, confused, neither did she. "Regardless, even if I didn't say anything Klein was about to free her anyway." I glanced at the self-styled samurai. "Am I wrong?" Just before I stopped to speak with Freya, Klein had stopped running, and his hand was on the hilt of his katana.

He gritted his teeth. "I know it's a trap," he muttered. "I'm not... stupid. But even if it is a trap..." He started shaking with pent-up emotion. "Even if I know it's a trap... I don't care!" he shouted. "I can't just turn my back on someone if they need help! Even... even if it means we fail the quest. And even if Arun gets destroyed! If I've got the chance to do some good for someone, I will! 'Cause that's what being a samurai's all about!"

I shrugged and gestured to the cage. "As you were, then." Stepping aside, I watched impassively as he turned, tears in his eyes, and ran to the cage.

"Don't worry, Princess, I'm comin'!" he shouted as he bared his katana blade. With three swift slashes, the ice bars separating us from Freya splintered and then shattered.

"Are you sure about this?" Kirito hissed as the others joined me.

"Do you trust me?" A simple question that had far too much weight behind it. Gods damn it all.

Kirito studied me for a second, then shook his head and sighed. "Yeah, I do. Anyway, it's too late to take it back now, isn't it?" I just shrugged and grinned.

"I'm assuming this has some good payoff later?" Argo asked, and I nodded with a small grin. My girlfriend studied me briefly, then smirked mischievously. "I'm looking forward to it."

"Oh, you'll get a kick out of it," I told her, and her smirk only widened.

Klein knelt down in front of Freya. "I'm free!" she said happily. "Thank you, fairy swordsman." She smiled.

"No worries," Klein said in as smooth a tone as he could manage. "Let me help you up." It's like I could see the sparkles around him, like the game shifted art styles for him or something. Kinda creepy, actually. I glanced around, and the other girls just seemed nonplussed about the whole thing. I even heard Liz grumble under her breath about how 'he always treated her like one of the guys, then this big-boobed blonde bimbo shows up and suddenly now he's Mister Smooth?'. To be fair, though, you couldn't really expect him to act the same way around them as he did around a - I glanced at Argo, and mouthed the word 'beautiful' to her while raising an eyebrow and nodding to Freya. She studied the woman for a second, then nodded - beautiful woman.

"No, Freya said, and I realized her manacles were actually connected by the same chain. And that the same chain didn't actually have anything restraining her. Huh. "I can manage it." Slowly, she started to push herself to her feet, but stumbled when her elbow gave out.

"Woah!" Klein exclaimed, rushing to catch her. "The way out's kinda far, doll-face." Was someone recording this? I really hope someone was recording this. "You gonna be okay to make it on your own?"

Freya made a sound of discontent, and Klein frowned. "I could," she said, eyes closed, "but I'm afraid I cannot leave the castle just yet." She opened her eyes - she looked serious. "For you see, I must first retrieve my people's treasure which King Thrym stole." I took a closer look - for some reason, her appearance reminded me of Asuna back when she was Queen Titania, rather than her current Undine avatar. Even if I hadn't seen her personally, there had been pictures - plenty of pictures. Sugou was a disgusting creep. "If you would, fairy swordsman, please let me accompany you to Thrym's room."

"Eh...?" Klein looked shocked. Like this was probably the furthest he'd ever made it with a girl. "Uh... En..." C'mon, just a few more vowels and you'll have them all.

"This is beyond fishy, don't you think?" Asuna whispered to me and Kirito.

He shrugged. "Rythin says he's got this under control, I believe him."

Asuna looked at me, and then sighed. "I hope you know what you're doing..."

"Hey, uh, Kirito?" Klein asked, sounding kinda pathetic.

Kirito sighed. "Alright. I can't stand seeing ya beg. Since we've only got a little further to go before the end, _and_ seeing as how Rythin says it's okay..." He shrugged and spread his arms, palms up.

"Yeeessss!" Klein's face was the picture of glee. "You hear that?" he said, turning back to Freya. "You're comin' with us, gorgeous!" None of the others seemed very impressed. Asuna and Liz in particular seemed extremely unimpressed. "We'll help you beat that jerk Thrym. We're in the same boat now, so let's get wet together!" Snrk. I don't think he thought that sentence through very well.

"Oh, thank you fairy swordsman!" Freya leaned forward and gave Klein a big hug. Her breasts pressed against his chest, and he was barely able to keep the dopey grin to himself. To his mind, he was about to score and score big. With an NPC, but I don't think that would stop him.

"Delete Klein's last comment from your memory, Yui," Kirito said in a deadpan voice.

"That goes for you too, Din," said Argo in the same tone of voice. Asuna and I just grinned slightly.

A prompt appeared in front of Kirito - as the party leader, he was the one in charge of letting Freya join our group. He pressed the accept button, and a new health bar appeared at the bottom. As expected, it had Freya's name - what was unexpected was how her MP wbar was as long as her Health bar, and how her icon wasn't one of the nine races. As I pondered that, comparing it to what Din had just told me, I was listening to Klein and Freya absently; Klein introduced himself, and Freya gushed over how wonderful his name was. He laughed, rubbing his head awkwardly. Ignoring them, I turned to look at the others; Sinon was waiting impatiently, arms folded, while Leafa was watching Klein with a tolerant if unimpressed look. "With the way they got this dungeon laid out," Kirito said, "the final boss room should be down those stairs. Remember, he's the last boss, so he's gonna be way stronger than the other ones." I would give him grief about going over things we already know, but then again Sinon is kinda new to this stuff. "When you hit him, hit fast and hit hard." He looked at me. "Until Rythin, Yui, and Din can figure out the attack patterns, we'll be on the defensive, so no-one moves on him until I say."

"Don't forget, the bosses usually get new attacks when they hit half and critical health," I added. "So the attack patterns will change and you all need to be careful." Everyone nodded.

"This is it, guys," Kirito said. "Get in there, and give it all you got!"

"Right!" everyone cheered. Pina even floated up, and I could swear her cry sounded like the word 'alright'. Maybe I'm just projecting and or hallucinating, but if we could understand Pina that would be fantastic. I'm not even sure how it could be useful, except scratch that it would be killer for recon.

We descended the stairs; floating crystals served to ensure that the corridor was well lit, and busts lined the wall. Very... Greek and Roman of them, for a Norse environment. We stopped outside the massive doors that led to Thrym's throne room, and they slowly creaked open before halting with a booming thud. A wash of cold air poured over us, so cold that it was steaming just from being in the outside cold air. Asuna chanted a quick spell to renew our buffs, and I grinned at her. A second set of chanting caught our attention, and we looked over curiously to see Freya standing there, hand raised and Words of Power swirling around her. She finished her chant, and green ribbons twisted around us as our bodies glowed gold. A heartbeat later, our health bars extended far past where they should have ended.

"She boosted our maximum HP!" Silica gasped as she and Liz examined themselves. "I didn't know a spell could do that!" I looked over, and sure enough Argo was already having Din repeat the words that Freya had used, scribbling them down so she could try translating them later. We'd already figured out it was some sort of combination between Norse and a made-up fantasy language, so the words would be translatable. I love it when programmers do that. After everyone settled down from the shock, Kirito nodded to everyone, and we nodded back. Ready to fight and kill.

We strode through the mist, entering Thrym's throne room; when our vision cleared, I sucked in a quick breath. There was enough gold and glittering jewels in here to fund us for as long as we needed. I glanced at Din. "You know what to search for, right?" He nodded. "Off you go, then." Din lifted off of my shoulder and disappeared into the closest pile of treasure.

Liz stopped in front of one of the larger piles. "Cha-cha-ching," she whispered almost reverently. That's right, we'd been stopped from selling that pearl that turned out to be an egg, didn't we? Maybe we could finally grab some extra loot from this dungeon. "I wonder how much Yrd's here."

Klein laughed and flapped - it was really weird, the way he was moving - his way over to a golden statuette of an angel. "Coochie-coochie-coo," he murmured, leaning forward until his nose was about to touch the angel.

I bet it would have, had a loud booming voice not interrupted, "Who let the flies in?" Instantly, we were all on guard and staring down the long treasure-filled hallway. "The buzzing of their wings is so irritating!"

"I know, right?" I said casually with a wave of my hand. "Good news for you, the exterminators are here to stop out the infestation."

"Hmm..." A loud thud was my only answer, and the hall shook as another thud followed. Even the lights shook. They were footsteps. Heavy, heavy footsteps. "I shall crush them all! Before they annoy me further." A large boot was our first clue, and I grinned. No, that was no horrible beast. It was but the forepaw of something so hideous I can't begin to remember. What loathsome alien creature had the Sphinx originally been carved to represent? The booming continued, and out of the shadows came a shadowed figure. As he approached, things became more clear; first, that this big dude was wearing a cape, and second I don't think he's wearing pants. I can tell because his skin is blue. And tattooed. We all slowly looked up, paling as we realized just how tall King Thrym really was. Kirito's went very wide as we moved from the cloth… whatever it was covering his groin area to his bare, _very_ muscled chest – hey don't judge, I can appreciate muscle – and dark gloves with markings similar to the gold eyes in the walls to the cloak clasped around his neck to the too blue eyes that peered at us from the shadows. Thrym chuckled. "Winged Alfheim insects," he said, and I realized he actually had a pretty sweet beard. I mean, still gonna murder him, but I can admire his facial hair. "Have you burrowed down here on the whims of Urd, the trollop?" He pronounced her name strangely. Like he had an accent, almost. "Wretches! How dare you enter here! Did you think you could steal my treasure?" The shadows around his head finally lifted slightly, and I got a good look at him; badass beard, badass mustache, badass crown, and then two braided bits of hair that somehow didn't detract from his intimidating appearance in the slightest.

"Yeah, actually," I called. "I mean, not like you could do much to stop us. I mean, all this work and you still have to rely on 'winged Alfheim insects'," I tried to mimic his pronunciation as best I could, "to kill Urd's buddies? Man, you and your Frost Giants are kinda pathetic."

"Rythin," Kirito hissed, "will you stop antagonizing the all-powerful god already?"

It's not like we're gonna let him live or anything, so I'll get my jabs in while he's not hostile. "I've mouthed off to ghosts, homicidal maniacs, a psychopath, _another_ god, and more homicidal maniacs. It would be insulting not to do the same for this one."

Thrym seemed almost amused by my taunts. "If you can tell me where I can find that woman, I shall give it all to you gladly." He smirked.

"Hah!" Klein shouted. "You think a samurai gives a damn about gold?" He leveled a finger at Thrym. "You can stick that treasure right up your ass! Better yet, let me give you a hand!" With a rasp of steel, his katana was out and pointed at Thrym's throat. Or, well, his best approximation of where his throat would be. He was quickly joined by the rest of us, all getting ready for battle.

Still, Thrym was smiling. "Lady Freya!" he said, sounding almost surprised. "How good of you to grace us with your presence today. I see you have left your cage! Shall I take it you have come to your senses, and agreed to become my wife?" He chuckled almost patronizingly, and frankly I was amazed. The amount of sheer arrogance in those few sentences was almost palpable; I mean, if he really tried, he might be able to match my level of arrogance! And that's almost unheard of.

"She's supposed to marry you?!" Klein exclaimed, looking back at Freya. The rest of our party turned to stare as well - although I didn't, since I already knew that little tidbit. To be fair, though, hearing that would probably be a shock. Even if they did trust me, there was the off chance I was wrong and Freya really was going to attack us. Sinon in particular was eyeing Freya closely, probably prepared to whirl and send an arrow straight through her throat the instant Freya moved to betray us. Good - I expect excellence from my mercenaries.

"Yes, she is," Thrym said. "That is why she came to this castle. Isn't that right, my dear?" He frowned. "However, the night before our wedding banquet I caught her sniffing around my treasure vault. As punishment, I locked her in a cage of ice." He laughed, the ugly sound rolling around in the throne room.

Leafa leaned over to Kirito and nudged him. "Hey, Kazuto. I know this story. I've read it before. Thrym, and Freya... a stolen treasure..." She frowned and looked to the side. "And something else, too... but what?" She looked at me, and I just shrugged and grinned. She would know I was aware of the story, but that's all she would have from me. Besides, Din was the one that had to tell me the details of the story - I had been more interested in Odin and his two ravens, and the monstrous beasts of old when doing my quick research on Alfheim's background.

"I will not become your wife!" Freya shouted, likely putting everyone's fears at rest. "These warriors and I are here to put an end to your reign of evil. Return my treasure immediately!"

Thrym stroked his beard, pretending to give the matter some thought, before chuckling. "Yes, that's the spirit, my lovely," he said. Did it sound that awkward when I called Argo 'catling'? Eesh, hope not. "I would expect nothing less from a woman whose beauty and valor are known throughout the land. And as they all say, the more noble the flower, the more satisfying it is to pluck." One, I'm pretty sure nobody says that. Two, was that a virginity joke? I'm pretty sure none of the Aesir are virgins, and Freya was one of them. "After I've snuffed the life from these insects, I shall shower you with _extra_ affection." He chuckled, and I shivered at the horrible sound. Also at what Thrym had just implied. That too.

Everyone tensed as his chuckles turned into full-blown maniacal laughter, and Klein clenched a fist. "You... bastard!" he shouted. "Over my dead body!" I'm pretty sure he's preparing to arrange that, Klein. "I, Lord Klein, won't let you lay a finger on Lady Freya!"

"Since when did we become landed nobles?" I muttered to Argo.

She just shrugged. "I don't know, but that's my new stationary header. Lady Argo." I grinned. 'Lord Rythin'. Hm, it does have a certain ring to it.

At Klein's declaration, Thrym smirked nastily. "Listen to the angry little fly, buzzing away." He shifted. "Now, then. It is about time I began celebrating my conquest of Jotunheimr! I shall start from flushing the life from you!"

As the omnipresent background soundtrack kicked into high gear, I triggered Future Step and grinned tightly. The arena formed around us, revealing his face without any of the shadows; as the red crystal appeared over Thrym's head, his three bars of health filled rapidly. Kirito grinned as the battle began. "It's on!" he shouted. "Listen to Yui and Rythin, guys!" I fell back, flowing with the beat of battle as I moved back to where Asuna, Sinon, and Freya were standing. At the moment, I wasn't a physical fighter, I was the Tactician, and I needed to be out of aggro range to do my job. "Don't attack 'till they say!"

"You got it!" the others shouted, and I grinned. So glad they trust me to do my job.

Thrym stomped one massive foot as he took a step forward, and the ground shook; roaring, he curled his hand into a fist and punched forward. It was coming straight at us - and I grinned. This... This is what I live for. The roar of battle, the thousands of variables flowing like music I conducted with words and signals. Fighting was part of my blood.

I laughed madly as his fist rushed toward us, a wide manic grin stretching my lips. I wouldn't have it any other way!

* * *

 **Hahahaha… Oh, Nick, your battle rages are happening faster and faster. It's almost comical, really, the way he sinks into bloodlust that quickly.**

 **Anyway, if you know this myth? That grin on your face is exactly what Rythin is sporting when it would be appropriate. For those of you that don't, it's basically a smug smirk, the kind that makes you thank whatever deity you believe in that the person smiling like that doesn't have a camera. As for writing this bit in general: None of the monsters have given names, so I'm doing the same thing. It's also kinda stylistically appropriate – Rythin isn't really thinking clearly right now, so he's not giving the enemies the caution they deserve. Not naming them is just another sign that he's still a little bit messed up in the head at the moment. Like that would be hard to figure out, given his narration.**

 **Also, by the way, in addition to all that (and any other transition phrases that mean the same thing, it's been a while since English class and I forget any others), the Nightblade series has been rec'ed on TVTropes! Cool! It only took me a month to find out. Don't forget that this series has its own TVTropes page and people should probably add to it.**

 **Many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.**


	16. Regicide

**Chapter 16: Regicide**

* * *

 **December 28** **th** **, 2025**

As Thrym's initial attack slammed into the ground where the others had been standing a second before, I was already giving commands. "Asuna! Hold off joining in for now, we're going to need your healing until we can lock in his patterns." I'd noticed that the fist was huge and powerful enough to do splash damage, and he was going to have other attacks that did more damage. "Sinon!" The Cait Sith archer snapped to attention. "He's got a weak point, but I don't know where. Find it!"

"Roger," she said, drawing an arrow and pulling back the bowstring. She sent the arrows flying, one after the other; I watched Thrym carefully to see how he would react to the impacts. Arrows striking his arms, legs, chest? Nothing. But when she struck his chin with an arrow, the projectile exploding on contact, he winced and stumbled back, grumbling. "Got something," Sinon snapped.

"Good," I muttered, watching him carefully. "Weak spot is throat and chin. Need to remember that..." Time to learn. Palm to the side followed by swipe. Then he stomps for a bit, waiting for - striking at his side makes him stumble two - pulling back elbow and turning shoulder indicates punch is approaching. Lock him into a pattern by striking side then dodging punch? Negative, punch is too large area of effect to dodge consistently. Observe reaction while Kirito engages from - assault from two sides is step forward and - open hand sweep telegraphed by shoulders - I should have everything I'll need to give orders.

"Incoming!" Yui shouted, and I brought my attention back to the battle to see Thrym clenching his fist again, recovered from Sinon's assault. A cloud of dust and shattered ice - pulverized so finely as to be on par with the dust - rose in the air as Thrym's fist smashed into the ground with a deafening crash.

Fortunately, nobody had been hurt; Yui had seen the move coming and I had told the others how to escape. They were all standing firm, safe; maybe a little tired, but things were coming along more or less smoothly. Nobody had gotten too injured, I was starting to see the patterns behind his movements - enough to understand which move he was doing when, at any rate, though I still didn't have his actual movement patterns down. Probably because the Big Blue Giant didn't actually move all that much - and Yui was running analysis on him as quickly as possible. Thrym straightened, and I glanced at his health; unlike the bosses in New Aincrad, we could see his health bars, and I grimaced; we'd been fighting for five minutes so far, and we'd barely managed to scratch his first bar, clawing it down to maybe eighty percent left. At this rate, we'd run out of time before making it halfway through his second bar. As the dust cleared, Yui shifted. "Punches incoming!" she shouted. "Two in a row!"

As the others glanced at each other, I shouted, "Scatter to dodge the first! Then figure out who he's targeting and that person back the hell up!"

Thrym lunged forward, his fist driving into the ice like a piston. The instant before he struck, ice dust clouding my vision, I saw the others jump out of the way, scattering just like I'd told them to. Suddenly, Thrym burst from the cloud of concealing smoke and slammed his left fist into Kirito while airborne; unable to dodge, Kirito gasped in pain, though I think he managed to get his swords up in time to block. Despite that, however, he was still sent flying into the ground from the force of the blow. Leafa stopped and stared at where her brother had crashed before jumping away as Thrym's foot slammed into the ground where she had been standing. I saw Klein running toward Thrym, and I nodded to Sinon; she released the arrow she had nocked, and the red projectile streaked through the air before slamming into Thrym's head, exploding on contact. Klein looked over, and I nodded again; he charged up a Sword Skill and lunged through the smoke. A second later, he slashed at Thrym's back, releasing another large explosion; the King of the Frost Giants roared in pain as his shoulder blade literally exploded. Leafa charged from nearby, taking advantage of his stun; her blade glowing, she leapt into the air and spun, slicing out four as she rose, opening large red wounds on Thrym's leg. Kirito, somehow already recovered from being slammed into the ground at a speed that would make a bullet seem slow - and I'd know, I'd dodged the fucking things - charged from the smoke, swords out to the ready.

Thrym's eye opened, then, and I swore. "His ice breath is next!" Yui called, and I swore again. Klein and Leafa were still in midair and unable to dodge, and Kirito was too far away to be able to help them. Thrym bent over before jumping high into the air, knocking Leafa and Klein back with the wind from his jump; they grunted and started falling, but I wasn't worried. They'd be able to land. Thrym opened his mouth and it started glowing an icy blue.

The red swath appeared and I noted the positions of everyone on the battlefield as quickly as I could. The spellcasters and I were out of its range, but the melee fighters were going to get hit. "Three and Silica, left! Argo and Liz, right!" It was a horrible pidgin, but they got the message, jumping away.

"Coming up in three... two... one!" Yui shouted. I watched curiously as out of the corner of my eye Freya started chanting something, but that wasn't my main concern. I nodded as Thrym exhaled, his breath blowing out in a blast of sleet and hail. It washed over the ground, striking where my teammates had been only a second before. I looked over as something crackled and the smell of ozone filled the air, and I saw Freya standing there with her hand held high, a ball of purple lightning sparking. Huh. That's... That's different. Though, not entirely unexpected. Wordlessly, she leveled her hand at Thrym, and a bolt of lightning slammed into the Jotun as he was still in the air. He roared in pain, twitching uncontrollably as the lightning coursed through his body; after about five solid seconds of the thunderstorm, it dissipated and he fell to the ground, smoking. His first health bar was draining rapidly, and I smirked slightly. If she could just keep that up, we might actually have a chance. Though... If Din managed to find the treasure pretty soon, we might wrap this up with a little bit of extra time. Thrym crashed to the ground, and I let out the piercing whistle that told everyone to attack. Convenient to be able to do that, really.

The melee fighters nodded to each other and then charged as one. "Now it's our turn!" Kirito shouted. As they let out battle cries, their swords glowed with the mark of their Sword Skills. Leafa was the first to attack; she jumped high in the sky before flipping and slicing out as she fell. Thrym had stood up and managed to get a hand up to block, but the blade of wind created by her attack sliced through and struck his neck. Kirito and Klein struck next, their blades flashing out and leaving a large X-shaped gash on his leg. Argo jumped into the air, spinning gracefully before landing on his boot and beginning to attack. Her strikes were swift as she all but danced, twisting and turning as her wrist-mounted blades cut at his bare leg. I saw the flashes of light that told me the others were doing their jobs well, but my focus was on Argo; if I had to choose just one of them, she'd be the one I saved. It wasn't an easy choice, but it was one I had come to terms with a long time ago. Slowly, Thrym's health bar drained and he roared, knocking them all away.

"Pattern shift!" I shouted, probably unnecessarily. They knew what they were doing, but acting as mission control was pretty much my best strategy right now, so I just kept doing what I needed to, being the Tactician.

I saw Leafa pull out the medallion and stare at it. Her eyes widened suddenly. "Oh my god," she whispered, before raising her voice. "Kazuto! Nick! There's only three clear spots left!"

I swore loudly before snarling. "Kirito, any chance of upping damage output? That Skill Connect you used against the minotaurs?"

Kirito turned to look at Thrym; the blue-skinned giant roared and bent down towards them. "He's still got two full HP bars," he called. "Skill Connect won't even put a dent in it." Thrym pulled back and started sucking in air, and my eyes widened as the red area showed itself - it was literally wall to wall. "Ice breath attack, watch out!" Kirito shouted, raising an arm to shield his face from the wind Thrym was creating simply by inhaling. Stupid giants and their stupid lung capacity. I feel like this is unfair, somehow.

"Not good," I muttered. "Not good, not good, not good!" There was nowhere for them to dodge short of getting out of range. "Just block!" The others started at my shout, but obeyed me; I had no other choice but to let them take it. Hopefully, they could survive the blow, because if we wiped here we were boned. Asuna was almost out of magic, and she had been healing us almost consistently - but even so, her revival spells were expensive even for someone that had originally built their character for spellcasting. Asuna, obviously, hadn't. But there was still one person I could save - Argo had flipped backwards farther than the rest by virtue of being on his foot when the roar caught them, so she was closest to the edge of the attack. Moving without thinking, I grabbed her wrist and spun her around before shoving her out of the range of the attack; she blinked, startled, and I just gave her a wink and a wave before turning to hold my gauntlets in front of me, crunching down to lower the part of my body that was vulnerable.

"Damn it, Ry!" she shouted. My tail lashed and my ears were flat, so I'm assuming she knew not to come back after me. I had more health than she did for the simple reason that I had been a frontliner, and she had been an info broker; she hadn't needed to put points into raising her HP because she wasn't out fighting the bosses. I was, so I had a better chance of surviving this. And I'd burn the world to the ground before I let Argo get hurt if I could protect her.

Thrym inhaled so much of the frosty air his stomach swelled up like a balloon; if I wasn't fighting for my life - or a reasonable facsimile thereof, since it wasn't life or death anymore if I died - I'd have probably laughed at how comical he looked. Then again, the bowlful-of-jelly was all the rage these days, so maybe it was totally on purpose. If I hadn't already had the air snatched from my lungs, I would probably have said something. Thrym reared back, his gut swelling toward us - and then he leaned forward with a roar, unleashing a blizzard laser on us. What the fuck, game, really? Lasers? We're just gonna go straight to the freeze ray and ignore anything else. How horrible. I might just make a blog about it. A singing one. An orange barrier appeared in front of me, and I realized it was one of the buffs from Asuna or Freya, I wasn't sure which. After absorbing the brunt of his blizzard breath - dude should really chill on the wintermint gum, jeez - for three seconds, it shattered into tiny little red polygons that were blown away. From the other shattering sounds in front of me, the barriers protecting the others. I watched with muted anger as ice grew around the feet of everyone in front of me, slowly encasing them in ice; I felt my own body grow cold and felt the ice rise up around me, closing in my head last. Six of us frozen like sitting ducks on frozen patch of ground; I could see but I was trapped unable to move I needed to move move _move_ I needed to get AWAY! I lost _control_ over my body and that was unacceptable why couldn't I move move I have to _MOVE!_

Thrym stomped his big foot and things rippled out and the shockwave slammed into us, shattering the ice and blowing us all back. Freed from the prison of ice, my head swam for a second and my body reacted automatically, reaching down to turn my arc backward into a controlled cartwheel that brought me to my feet. I shook my head and looked back; Asuna had been staring in horror, safely out of the way of the blast, but she focused and cast the healing spell she'd had prepared. Her Undine symbol glowed and disappeared, and I heaved a sigh of relief as my health went back from very _very_ low red to reasonable level of green. It wasn't a full heal, but it was close enough. In front of me, the others straightened up from where they were crouched, knocked over from the blow; Silica and Liz were panting, while Leafa was seated and Klein was barely standing. Thrym shifted, hands raised in preparation for an attack - not a breath, too soon for that, not a punch, palms were down, so stomp. "Get out of there!" Asuna shouted. Thrym's target, likely Kirito since he was the one that Thrym punched earlier, was unable to move, though, and Thrym raised a knee.

Suddenly a glowing arrow shot out of nowhere and split into seven smaller arrows, each one on fire. Okay, this was just getting ridiculous, Sinon, c'mon now. The arrows slammed into Thrym's face, exploding with bursts of flame and staggering him; I glanced behind me, but she was watching Thrym with a scowl on her face. Protecting Kirito, or just trying to murder someone? Either way, good job, Sinon. Thrym roared with fury, stomping toward us with anger blazing in his eyes; I calmly stepped back, reaching out to the side with a fist. Argo gave me a fist bump as I tagged her back into the fight, and her tail was lashing. Someone pissed her off, and I'm really hoping it wasn't because I took the attack for her. "Sinon!" Kirito shouted, holding a potion bottle in his hand. "Keep him busy for a bit!"

Sinon had been the last person to strike him, so Thrym was locked onto her; he loomed over her before clenching a fist and swinging. I just smiled as Sinon immediately jumped into the air, easily reaching his head; like me, she'd had natural talent with some of the acrobatics, though unlike me she didn't incorporate it into her fighting style. I still think it had something to do with her being a Cait Sith, since every one of my friends that played a Cait Sith was incredibly lithe and moved fluidly. Sinon brought her knees up to her chest, hugging her bow tightly; Thrym had just a second to blink, looking shocked, before Sinon spun and kicked him in the face, using it to jump back, knocking him off balance in the process.

I noticed Freya approaching Kirito and Leafa, so I followed her. "Swordsmen!" she called to them, no worse for the wear. "If we continue this course of action we will not defeat Thrym." Her hands were even clasped neatly together, like she was just waiting patiently. Gone was that dark anger in her eyes that made her shock Thrym for half of his health bar. "There is but one hope now." She looked left and right at the walls - no, at the treasure piled up against the walls. "Somewhere in this room, hidden in the plunder, you will find the treasure of my people."

"I'm on it," Kirito said without hesitation. We'll take anything if we can win this battle - oh gods damn it Leafa why are you keeping the pendant in your cleavage? Seriously. I just noticed it, too, and now I won't be able to un-notice it. "Tell me what it looks like, and I'll grab it!"

"It is about yea big," Freya said, holding her hands about shoulder-width apart. "It is a hammer made of gold."

"Wait," Kirito said, "it's a hammer?"

I heard a smash behind me, and I looked to see Sinon dodging Thrym's fruitless attempts to smash her under his heel. I grinned; seeing her face, she seemed to be having the time of her life. I turned back to see Leafa staring at me. "You figured it out?" I asked her. She nodded, and we moved over to where Kirito was looking at the huge mound of golden treasure, his face torn between expressing hopelessness and frustration. "Yo, Din!" I shouted, and my son appeared from the pile of treasure a few meters down, hovering in the air before zipping over to me. "You find it?"

Din shook his head. "Sorry, Dad. I've been looking as fast as I can, but it's a lot of treasure."

"No problem, kid," I said, giving him a gentle nudge with my finger. "You did good. We're gonna let Kirito take it from here."

"How am I supposed to find it in all this?" he asked me plaintively.

Leafa blinked before turning to him. "Hey, Kazuto!" she said, excited. "You can find it using a lightning skill!" Hm... I guess that counts. It makes a surprising amount of sense, actually, since the lightning skill would show us exactly where the hammer was.

"Lightning?" Kirito repeated dubiously. "Really?" He shrugged when he saw how convinced Leafa was, and took a running leap; he used a golden shield as a springboard and jumped, flipping in the air. Midair, his sword glowed a faint purple, and he slammed it into the ground. Instantly, crackling lightning bolts came from the sword and coursed through the mounds of treasure, the gold conducting the electricity and ensuring that every piece of gold in the hoard was charged. As the skill died, a purple gleam shone from between a golden shield and a chest full of gold coins, and I grinned. Found you~!

Kirito and Leafa gasped, before nodding to each other; leaving his swords embedded in the floor, Kirito scrambled over to where we had seen the gleam and dug frantically through the treasure. After a few coins went flying, a golden glow illuminated his face, and I peered over his shoulder. "There it is," he gasped, staring at the golden glowing hammer. He reached out and touched it; as soon as his hand touched the metal, the glow died and it was back to being a regular golden hammer. He tried to lift it, but he couldn't budge it in the slightest.

"Put your back into it, Kirito," I said, turning to watch the fight with a critical eye. Sinon was keeping Thrym busy, but that wouldn't last for long - she'd get tired, or he'd get a lucky hit in, or something. "After all, it's a hammer made for the gods, it won't be easy to lift."

Groaning and straining, Kirito tried to lift the hammer; even with his massive strength, he couldn't do it. He used his second hand, and the best he could do was lift the handle. With a final surge of effort, he managed to straighten up, though he did stagger a bit. "Freya," he grunted, before turning around with a surge of effort and tossing the hammer high into the air. "Catch!"

Freya casually lifted a single hand and caught the hammer easily, like it had been aiming for her hand the entire time - and if Din was right, and by the looks of the hammer he was, it probably was - and stared at it almost curiously. I snickered at Kirito's dumbfounded look, and then my eyes lit up with glee. Freya had the hammer back, which meant that there was no more reason for that, and then that would... Hee hee hee, this was going to be amazing! Freya blinked at the hammer, almost confused, before her pupils shrank as she gasped. The hammer started glowing, and electricity crackled through her body as energy started surging around her, making her dress and her hair flutter. "It flows," she intoned, and I heard her say it in two voices; one the Freya voice we'd heard before, and the other in a deep, gruff tone. "Into me..."

Kirito and Leafa watched this. "...huh?" Kirito finally managed.

Klein whirled around at the sound and the lightshow. "F-freya?" he stammered, his voice cracking. Then he looked back at Thrym and jumped away just before the king's fist slammed into the ground where he had been. At some point, Sinon had lost his focus and now he was just going after whoever was closest or the easiest target.

"Through me..." Freya was almost doubled over. "It overflows...!" Her breath caught in her throat, and she let out a loud scream that was coupled with a low male shout. Her body bulged and twisted, growing larger and larger; as it did, the Freya scream disappeared, being swallowed up by the shout.

"Freya?" Kirito asked uneasily, Leafa watching on in silent confusion. Not every day you see a girl your size turn into a giant man. Who... was apparently naked. Oh gods my eyes.

A green whirlwind covered the giant at that point, and when it exploded away the man had thankfully put on some clothes. He was holding a gigantic version of the hammer in his right hand, and a yellow cloak that matched Thrym's, aside from the color. He was dressed pretty much the same way, and I looked away before my mind was blown by too much sculpted muscle. Fucking gods, making it look easy. The giant turned around, and his beard was somehow even bushier than Thrym's; he probably traded in the moustache for a better beard. Notably, a long scar ran from each of his eyes down his cheeks. Both eyes were white, but I knew he wasn't blind. As the others all stared, gaping in awe, Klein collapsed to his knees - fortunately, Thrym had stopped trying to kill us at the appearance of someone his size to fight. "She's..." he babbled. "She's a...a...a..."

"A friggin' dude?" he and Kirito shouted at the same time.

I cackled in glee. "Know how I said Freya was a trap?" I waved at the giant. "Totally was. Just a different meaning of the phrase. Hi Thor!" I called up as his name appeared on the HUD, replacing Freya. Argo stared at the bearded giant, then looked at me, her eyes thoughtful. She started laughing, and that made me a little uneasy.

Thor turned to stare at Thrym, who had stopped fighting and was watching the golden-haired giant. "The god of thunder," I heard Kirito whisper. I glanced over to see Argo snickering while shaking her head; she must have realized exactly what I was doing and why I did it. Thor let out a loud roar of anger, and Thrym finally turned to face the god of thunder.

The ground shook as the two giants faced off against each other. "You despicable giant!" Thor rumbled. "Your treachery and deceit has come to an end!" He raised Mjolnir, the golden hammer, over his head and gritted his teeth. "And now you shall pay for stealing Mjolnir!" In the original legend that Din had told me, Thrym had stolen it and demanded Freya's hand in marriage in exchange for the legendary weapon. So Thor had dressed up as Freya and gone to retrieve it. The rest of it played out pretty much how this went, aside from, well, having Klein hit on the disguised Thor. That was just an added bonus that brought me joy.

Thrym breathed into his open hand, and his frosty breath took on the shape of a battleaxe made of ice. Mjolnir clashed with the hand axe, and Thor reached out with his free hand and slugged Thrym full in the face. I laughed out loud; it was almost hilarious to see that smug bastard get popped a good one. Still, Thrym gave as good as he got, returning the blow with a left cross to Thor's jaw. "No, I shall make _you_ pay for deceiving me! Thrym roared in fury. "You miserable excuse of a god!" Thor was twitching in rage at the insult. "I shall rip that beard from your face and send your body back to Asgard!" he shouted, raising his axe over his head in preparation to strike.

"Thor's pulling aggro from Thrym," Sinon shouted. "Rythin, we should attack while we can!" Nice of her to give me the final say, as it was my job, after all.

"Sounds like a plan," I said, casually stepping over to Klein. "C'mon, pal, up and at 'em."

"You knew?" Honestly... I sighed and nodded. "You're a monster," he muttered, pulling himself to his feet.

"I'd take offense if it weren't true," I said calmly. "Alright, ladies, gentlemen, and Liz!"

"Screw you!"

"No thank you, peanut gallery!" I snarked back at her. "Everyone, hit that fucker, hit him hard, and hit him _now_!"

They all moved, and I was falling back through the ranks as the melee fighters passed me. Thrym was a god and more importantly, a boss; unfortunately, the devs had made it so that poison rarely affected them, so my Moonblade was useless. Besides, I could do more damage with my metric crapton of knives - crapton being a totally official unit of measurement, just like one Kirito's worth of damage. Which, coincidentally, was about how much I could do with my knives if I didn't miss and didn't have to worry about hitting an ally.

"Don't hold back!" Kirito shouted as he charged, Leafa right behind him. "Use all your Sword Skills!"

I had my go at Thrym while the others were still far out; I didn't want to miss and hurt them. Still, Thrym was so huge I couldn't possibly not hit the bastard, and I didn't hesitate; I grabbed two knives from my inner pockets and threw them while bringing my hands up to grab knives that had been slipped in the collar of my coat. I didn't even bother seeing their effects, I just threw them as I smoothly moved to knives hidden in my boots, drawing them and throwing in one smooth motion as I jumped and spun in midair to let my grasping hands have less distance to travel. I landed with a light thump and twitched my arms, releasing the knives in the drop sheaths and throwing those as well. Next were the knives strapped to my waist behind me, and those joined the barrage of explosions and crystals and spikes. I hadn't run out of knives, but those were the last I threw; my friends had reached the giant, and that meant I would put them in danger.

"Freya!" Klein screamed in anguish, his sword glowing a blazing red. He leapt into the air while screaming in what was now seeming to be rage, his katana bursting into flame as he brought it down against the back of Thrym's leg. Asuna held out her hand, and her rapier appeared in front of her; with a muted cry, she drew the rapier and dashed toward Thrym, her rapier point seemingly splitting up into hundreds of different strikes before she struck with that laser-quick Linear she was so known for. A sonic boom echoed from the impact point of Thrym's boot as the wind magic discharged. Liz attacked with her electrified mace, spinning and slamming it into Thrym's toe. Ouch, that's gotta hurt.

Thrym roared in pain, showing his very pointy eyeteeth; his health was draining, down to a quarter of his second bar, but not very quickly. Argo jumped into the air and plunged her blades into the back of his knee, the same one Klein had targeted, and a second later a black shadow erupted from the point of impact, slicing through his leg like a buzzsaw - although unfortunately it was just a shadow and only did damage, rather than severing the limb. Silica ran up from behind him and jumped into the air; she twirled in the air before landing on the nearby wall, pushing off a second later before flipping in midair to cleave straight down Thrym's back. The water-element attack must have been powerful, because Thrym dropped to one knee, staggered.

"This is it!" Kirito shouted as Thrym groaned in pain, running toward the downed giant king, Leafa and the others moving in a second later. Sinon fired an arrow, and the others all charged up what was probably their strongest Sword Skills. I decided fuck it and ran in there as well, my Diamond Dragontalons glowing a dark grey. We all struck simultaneously, our Sword Skills unleashing on his downed back in a flurry of lights and explosions. As wind blades ravaged his body while explosions shattered crystals of ice and pillars of stone, Thrym roared in pain and agony, and I watched with dark, bloody satisfaction as his health plummeted.

Downed, he was on his last bit of his last health bar, and Thrym fell to his hands, panting. Thor took one step in front of him, and the ground shook. "Return to your abyss!" the god of thunder roared, Mjolnir raised over his head for the finishing blow. "King of the Giants!" With a massive crash, Mjolnir slammed into Thrym's head, smashing the jotun's head into the ground with a massive bolt of electricity. Thor raised Mjolnir cautiously, and the jotun's crown fuzzed before shattering into crystals. I grinned triumphantly, enjoying seeing Thrym bow before us.

Still, Thrym laughed, even as ice crusted over him, making me shudder. I did _not_ like how I felt when I had been frozen. "Revel in your victory, insects," he said, and his voice seemed to echo through the room. "But take heed if you put your faith in the dogs of Aesir!" With a kick, Thor smashed Thrym's head in, and the frost giant exploded into a big ball of icy light, making Thor's cloak flutter in the wind. As the remnants of Thrym disappeared, we all regrouped, staring up at Thor in awe. Din and Yui rejoined us, floating over from wherever they'd been. So long as they were safe, I didn't mind. Either way, Din probably got an amazing recording of the fight, and it was totally going on the internet once I got a look at it.

"You have my gratitude, brave fairies warriors," Thor said once the light had faded entirely. "Thanks to you, my treasure has been returned and my disgrace avenged." Right, the disgrace of dressing like Freya or the disgrace of being caught dressing like Freya? Because I couldn't really tell. "Now then," he said, lifting Mjolnir, "I must reward you." He held his hand over the head of the hammer, and it started glowing; a large gem appeared, though it seemed small comparatively. The yellow gem fell, transforming into a player-sized version of Mjolnir with a crackle of electricity and landing in Klein's hand with a clank. "That is Mjolnir, the Lightning Hammer" Thor said. "Use it in noble battles." Thor apparently gave it to Klein because the samurai let him out of the cage. I briefly wondered how much I could get him to part with it for, then noticed Liz looking at the hammer almost covetously. Fine, I'd let the actual hammer user have the hammer. "Farewell, my champions!" Thor raised his Mjolnir and with an audible 'ping', the hammer started glowing a brilliant golden light. The light shone so brightly that I had to shield my eyes with my hand or else risk being blinded; stupid Cait Sith eyes. There was a blinding flash, despite shielding my eyes, and when the spots stopped dancing in my vision Thor had disappeared. A heartbeat later, his health bar disappeared from our party - that symbol was probably the symbol of the Aesir, then - and our health returned to their normal levels, no longer receiving the buff. Then, the reward screen appeared, and we grinned at each other.

Klein was the only one not grinning, and that was because he was staring at Mjolnir with a stunned look on his face. Kirito and I wandered over, and my friend slapped Klein on the back. "Congrats, pal, you got a legendary weapon."

"Yeah, but..." Klein turned around slowly. "It's a hammer! I don't got no hammer skills." He hid his eyes, sobbing into his sleeve.

"You could always give it to Liz," I said casually. "She uses hammers."

Klein sniffled and then looked at Liz, who smiled charmingly. "As long as you don't break it down for parts," he said.

"I wouldn't do that!"

"I don't know, Liz," Asuna said, laying a finger along her cheek and tilting her head, seemingly in thought. "I've heard you get a lot of rare metal if you break down a legendary weapon?"

"Really?" At Liz's excited tone, Klein whimpered and clutched at Mjolnir, hugging it to his chest. That's right, it was his last memento of his lightning-fast romance with the disguised Thor. You'd think he'd actually want to get rid of it, but hey, I don't judge another man's preferences. My stance on the matter is 'boink and let boink'. "Relax, Klein, I won't take it apart. Now gimme."

After their transaction was completed, I looked over to Argo to see her talking quietly with Silica. I was going to say something when the entire palace shook, shuddering; ice shards started falling from the ceiling, and we all staggered as the ground shifted underneath our feet, surging upwards, before catching ourselves. "The...the room's moving!" Sinon gasped. "No... it's floating?!"

"Guys, I don't think the quest is done yet!" Argo called out.

I blinked, then looked at Leafa, who was staring at her pendant with a worried look on her face. "Hey Kazuto?" she called out, and Kirito ran over. "I think Argo's right!" I frowned, gnawing at my lower lip, and tried to remember Urd's exact words. 'Good fairies', so on and so forth, 'remove Excalibur from its plinth'... Oh. ...Fuck. "Look at the medallion! It's all black, except for that one clear spot!" Man, and it was such a nice emerald too. Shame, we could have sold it for a lot of money.

Din came over and shouted, "Dad! Mom! Everyone! Yui and I found a stairway behind Thrym's throne!"

"Excellent," I told him. "Let's move, people! Kirito, Leafa!"

We ran over to stand at the entrance to the stairs down, and I blinked at the darkness beckoning. Still, this should theoretically lead to Excalibur, so... I guess we move and go get it before we lose that last bit of light. "Let's go," Kirito said, and started running down the stairs of ice. Great, more stairs. Fantastic.

The stairs turned into a spiraling staircase centered around an ornate pole of ice, and eventually let out into a small room, barely big enough to hold all of us and the staircase. The floor was ornate, gold inlaid in geometrically pleasing patterns. The walls were transparent, and we could see Jotunheimr. However, everyone's main focus was on the centerpiece of the room - the large golden sword sticking out, embedded into the ice. Kirito stared at the sword, and I felt my lips thin slightly. He had told me what he had done to Sugou, how he had taken control of Kayaba's Heathcliff account and summoned Excalibur before tossing it to Sugou. That puffed-up 'King of the Fairies' had no idea how to use a sword, and without his GM powers he was pathetic enough that Kirito dismantled him. "Long time no see," Kirito whispered, and Asuna and I looked at each other. He reached out, grasping the handle, and tugged - and the sword didn't budge in the slightest. Uh oh. Even grasping with both hands and straining with all his might, Excalibur just shook and would not move from its icy prison. I looked close and I could see two pieces of wood on either side of the blade - probably the roots of Yggdrasil.

"You got it, Kirito!" Asuna shouted.

Liz clenched her fists. "C'mon, pull harder!"

"Put your back into it!" Sinon added.

Kirito sighed before readjusting his grip. "Don't give up, Daddy!" If he couldn't do it, none of us could; he had the highest strength out of all of us.

"You can do it! I know you can do it!" Silica cheered, Pina adding in her own cry of support.

"Go, keep pulling!" Klein shouted.

Argo grinned. "Do this and your name's in the history books!"

"Uncle, go for it!"

This would be the part where I added my cheer for Kirito. But true to form, I just folded my arms and watched.

With a scream of rage, Kirito tried his hardest to pull the sword free from the ice. This would probably be the part where I added my own stirring words of encouragement, but, well, I'm bad at that. So, I'm just gonna let him do his own thing, instead staring at the ice because that's better. Slowly, cracks started splintering from where the sword had been embedded, and as Kirito shouted and struggled, the cracks kept growing wider and wider and wider. Finally, with a gleaming golden light, a small bit of Excalibur shifted from the ice; that little bit let the light start coming from the other cracks in the ice, and with a ring of steel Excalibur slid free from the ice.

Kirito collapsed back with a gasp, falling to the ground with Excalibur in his hands.

With a burst of shattering ice the two bits of wood I had seen exploded upwards, thickening as they went; as the roots of Yggdrasil sought their mother tree, more and more roots appeared from the ice. A thick root coiled its way up the central pillar, smashing through the thin ice steps as it went, and I blinked at the sudden disappearance of our escape route. "Er, was that supposed to happen?" I asked out loud, to no one in particular. More roots appeared coiled around the pillar, preventing us from getting out that way even if we could somehow fly.

"Oh crap!" Klein yelped, Silica and Asuna clutching each other for safety and comfort as the room started re-enacting the end of... of... of that one movie where the forest grows back super quick. The name is escaping me at the moment, maybe because _holy fuck_ there's a giant tree growing out of this room and we're probably about to fall. "It's... breaking up!" The roots pushed out, smashing through the translucent ice walls, and we were suddenly exposed to the outside air.

"Daddy!" Yui exclaimed, staring at the pillar. "Thrymheim is collapsing! We have to leave here now!"

Kirito looked around for an exit, searching for some escape frantically; behind him, Sinon seemed incredibly confused, before turning to Argo. "Is… this normal?" she asked.

"For Kirito and Ry? Surprisingly so." Argo shrugged. "Last time they beat a major quest, they broke Yggdrasil the first time." Oh, right, when we saved Asuna. "Time before that, they shattered Aincrad."

"Collateral damage is our number one priority at Trinity," I muttered, staring at the roots as they started smashing through the pillar that was keeping this tiny platform connected to the rest of Thrymheim and keeping us from falling immediately. A second later, it smashed through that, and a single root was the only thing keeping us from falling. ...Then that started fraying too, and I swore before closing my eyes, refusing to look at anything else. "Everything I look at!" I snapped. "Immediately, the worst thing happens. Fuck you, Murphy!"

I heard Klein laugh. "Alright," he said uneasily. "Looks like it's up to me to save the day!" Because this can't go poorly in the slightest. Despite my resolve not to look at anything, I needed to witness this failure; I opened my eyes to see Klein climbing up the roots that used to be the pillar of ice, using the ridges as hand and footholds. "Time for some Olympic-grade high jumping!" Despite myself, I looked up at the rapidly fraying root holding us in the sky, and raised an eyebrow; if something that thick couldn't hold us, what chance did he have? Klein jumped and lunged, and just as he did so the vine snapped in two, his grasping hand catching nothing but the air. He fell back down to the ground with a thud, landing on his rear and groaning.

"Well done," I said, looking off to the side as his sudden landing snapped two of the threads holding us up. "No, really, I mean it," I added as the platform tilted slightly before the other two icy threads snapped and we started plummeting. "That was majestic!" Everyone else was screaming, so I'm not sure he heard me. Everyone - including me, because while I'm a sarcastic asshole I don't have a death wi- I'm not an idiot - was hugging the ground and roots, cling to something relatively solid for dear life. Carefully crawling over to Argo, I grabbed her hand with one of mine, and we clung together. "What are the chances we survive Niflheim?" I asked her.

"Pretty slim," she said, having to shout to be heard over the roaring of the wind as we fell. "I mean, we probably won't even survive the fall."

"So much for Excalibur," I muttered, looking over the edge of the platform to see the rapidly approaching hole in the ground.

"Leafa!" Kirito called out, still holding Excalibur against his chest. "How much time is left?"

The blonde girl pulled out her pendant and stared at it before her shoulders relaxed in relief. "We made it!" she shouted, and everyone grinned tiredly. "Thank god... We made it!" She grabbed Kirito in a tight hug, obviously happy that the world would survive. I'm confused... What was the high-stakes mission on this, again? Just the time limit on the quest, and if we didn't make it in time Ragnarok happened, but that really... wasn't the end of the world. Heh. Well, I mean, it _was_ , technically, but we would probably still be alive, maybe. Leafa sniffed, trying to hold back tears of happiness.

Kirito wrapped her in a tight hug. "Yeah." I grinned as I saw what he was doing behind her back; trying desperately to put Excalibur in his inventory. I nudged Argo and gestured with my chin; she looked up from where she and Din were huddling in a small nook created by the roots and snickered briefly before hugging Din tight, her ears flat against her hair. Silently, I moved over and hugged her tightly, wanting to feel her warmth against me. My tail curled around hers, and she buried her face in my shoulder before purring slightly. Our death wouldn't be the end of the world, but it was still comforting to have her with me. Eventually, after tapping the button several times and having it reject him each time, Kirito sighed, looking depressed. Obviously giving up trying to add Excalibur to his inventory, he made a small sound of discontent.

Leafa gasped suddenly, her ears pricking up. As the Sylph looked over the edge, every Cait Sith in the party pricked their own ears up at the same time as we each heard something faint, far off in the distance. "Did you hear that?" Leafa murmured, pulling away from Kirito. There was another warble in the distance, though it was hard to tell with the wind howling as we fell. "There it is again!" she gasped. She scrambled to her feet and approached the edge, staring out over the pit - and we all heard the next call, a very familiar sound. Off in the distance, Tonkii was flying towards us, those creepy tendrils swaying in the wind. "Tonkii!" Leafa gasped, beaming. Tonkii replied with another purring warble, and flew up toward us. "We're saved!"

"Hurry guys," Klein exclaimed, scrambling to his feet. "Get on his back!"

Tonkii hovered next to the slowly falling platform, and the others started jumping; Asuna and Sinon were the first to cross over, landing easily, followed by Liz and Leafa. With a small 'hah', Silica jumped off and landed lightly; Argo did the same, though she managed to even add in a little twirl for style. Ah, my dancing catling. Klein was supposed to be next, but the coward just crouched at the edge, trying to figure out if he wanted to actually jump over to Tonkii's back or if he'd be safer away from the Cthulhu elephant. "We're runnin' out of time," Kirito said calmly.

"Yeah, I know!" Klein snapped, glaring at him before standing up awkwardly. "Eugh... Wish it wasn't so high up..."

"Go on," Kirito said, grinning. "Jump!" With a one-handed shove, he pushed Klein out over the edge of the falling platform.

"You diiiiiiii..." Klein's shout trailed off as he plummeted down, the girls watching with relatively worried stares.

"Damn it, Nick!" Leafa shouted.

"It wasn't me!" I whined, jumping over and clearing the distance with ease, landing in a crouch to absorb most of the shock. "Kirito pushed him, not me." My tail twitched as I straightened up, moving over to stare over Tonkii's bone ridge. "It was funny, though," I added absently.

Looking down, I saw Klein safely caught in Tonkii's prehensile trunk. "Hey, Tonkii," Klein said weakly. "Thanks for savin' my ass..." I nodded, satisfied that the Tactician had managed to get his resources out of battle in one piece, and then stepped back to let Kirito back in control of the flow of the group. …Wait. Where's Kirito?

I looked over and frowned. His feet had sunk into the ice from the weight of Excalibur - there was no way he was going to be able to get a running start, let alone jump the distance necessary. It was the final test, I suppose, of whether the player's greed would trap them and doom them, or if they'd let go of their prize in order to live. I'm not sure which would be more appropriate, really, since this was based on Norse mythology. They'd probably be thrilled if Kirito jumped for it holding Excalibur high over his head and shouting a war cry. Kirito was staring at Excalibur, the sword shaking in his grip, even though he had the point resting in the ice. Yui was hovering next to him, and she turned to look at him with a worried look. She asked something, and Kirito grinned before saying something quietly. Suddenly, with a surge of effort he turned and threw Excalibur into the air like a shotput, sending the heavy golden sword spinning off into the air and dooming it to the pit below. He lunged over the gap, no longer weighed down, and landed on Tonkii's back easily. He turned as Tonkii flapped his eight wings and started flying away; I stood next to him, easily picking out the gleaming gold sword as it plummeted towards the pit. "You tried," I told him.

"I guess it was still too heavy for me," he said simply.

"Look at it this way," Argo said, coming over. "Now we have an excuse to explore Niflheim." I saw the light in her eyes, and knew she wouldn't stop until she'd been able to get down there and explore.

Then Sinon stepped forward, eyes calculating, and I grinned slightly. Or maybe not - maybe we wouldn't have a reason to go down there after all. "That's about two hundred meters," Sinon said, drawing an arrow out from her quiver.

"I can't see past fifty," I reminded her, just so she was aware. If she was using the spell I thought she was going to use, it distorted the trajectory of the arrow. She'd been practicing with it religiously, from what I could tell, but that was still just practice, not trying to tag a falling sword from two hundred meters away. "And you only get one shot, the rate it's falling."

"That's alright," she said, tail twitching slightly. "Let the big girl handle things." I grumbled something unflattering and bared my teeth at her, but subsided. As everyone stared on in awe, Sinon drew her bowstring back and sighted down the shaft of her arrow. She angled the bow slightly, and then took a breath. "Ek skýt aftur ör." The golden symbol of the Cait Sith appeared in front of her as the bow and arrow started glowing a bright light; she exhaled and then released.

The arrow, trailing a bright light that led back to a glowing rope in Sinon's hand, streaked through the dark. "You gotta be kiddin'," Kirito breathed. The arrow blazed through the night before striking the gemstone in the center of Excalibur's hilt dead on, attaching to it. The others gasped, and Sinon calmly grabbed the line and tugged, forcing Excalibur to come rocketing back toward us.

As they watched, jaws gaping in awe, Excalibur landed neatly in Sinon's hands, the girl letting out a soft 'ulp' at the weight. "Heavy," she gasped, straightening up.

"Now you see why I wanted her in Trinity?" I said to nobody in particular.

"Si...Si...Si..." the others all stammered, staring at her with wide eyes. Even Argo, who prided herself on being unflappable. If I hadn't know she could do this trick, I'd have been amazed too. "Sinon! That was awesome!" all the girls, including Yui, and Klein exclaimed.

Her ears twitched, and she turned to find Kirito staring at her in total shock - and a little bit of greed. "Don't look at me like that," she said, smiling. "You can have it." Kirito's face broke into a huge grin. "Here," she said, holding it up.

"Thanks!" Kirito breathed, reaching out to take it. "You're the bes-"

Before Kirito could grab Excalibur from her, she snatched it away, and I raised an eyebrow. Playing the tease? Or getting payback for when he pulled your tail? "I'll give it to you," she said coolly, "but with one condition." Gently, she placed it in his hands. "You gotta promise me..." She leaned in really close, smiling happily. "Every time you draw it, you have to think about me, okay?" She drew away, and I doubled over laughing in glee. It was both! It was both! Ah, that's fantastic!

I felt a bit of a death glare coming from the side, and I looked over; every girl was glaring at Kirito, unamused at either Sinon's demand or Kirito's quick acceptance, while Pina was crouched on top of Silica's head with her hackles raised and Yui had her fists planted firmly on her hips. Din looked at Argo, then shuddered and flew over to hide behind me, not that I could blame the kid. "Well, well," Klein said smugly, coming over to leer at Kirito. "The chick magnet's got another girlf-" Kirito's boot to his chin shut him up rather quickly. I just laughed harder at Kirito's look.

"Hm-hm," Kirito cleared his throat, pointedly ignoring Klein as the older man rolled around, clutching at his face and moaning something about how the ladies would never love him now. "I will," he said solemnly, turning to Sinon. "I'll think about you every time I draw it. Thanks a lot."

"You're more than welcome," Sinon said, laughing slightly. She winked at him, and Kirito chuckled uneasily.

A little bit of flying later - and watching Kirito try to avoid the death glares from the other girls while still clutching Excalibur like a priceless treasure - I heard a snapping sound. I looked over to see Thrymheim, the proper Thrymheim rather than the little tiny bit of it that we were in, beginning to fall, piece by piece. Oh, right. Cardinal can destroy its own maps. "Man, this sucks," Liz sighed. "We only got to do one quest in it, and now it's gone for good."

"I know," Silica mumbled. "It seems like such a waste."

Curious, I poked Din. "How much of the map did we explore, anyway?"

"About thirty-seven percent, give or take five," he replied. Huh. Not all that much. Ah well, I hate mazes anyway.

The pieces of Thrymheim fell down into the void, and I blinked. "Wait, wasn't Thrymheim made from the -" There was a glimmer of light, and a loud rumbling. A heartbeat later, a huge geyser of water burst out from the void, sending a column of water as high in the air as we were, and everyone gasped. "...the Well of Urd," I finished lamely. We all watched as the crystal blue waters washed over the ground, wiping away all traces of ice and snow; the well of water began filling up the great empty basin, and I looked up to see roots of Yggdrasil growing down, instinctively seeking the pure water. A single twisted root splashed into the water; the rest spread across the surface of the water, spreading quickly like veins from the heart. Everywhere the roots touched, grass and flowers spread as though the land had been in a state of hibernation, just waiting for the moment that spring would come again.

"Look at that!" Asuna gasped. "It's sprouting!" Sure enough, the tiny little offshoots of the Yggdrasil roots were growing leaves and reaching up toward the sky, forming bushes and trees and all manners of vegetation. The frozen pillars of what I had thought were stone turned out to be large buildings, still somehow intact despite spending a long time covered in snow and ice. Eh, I'm just gonna chalk it up to magic and let it go. The trees grew and blossomed, rising up toward the suddenly blue sky; the omnipresent gray clouds and fog had broken, letting the sun beam through. There were even a few birds flapping around, the first sign of wildlife other than the Frost Giants and, uh... whatever Tonkii was supposed to be.

"So warm..." Silica murmured, basking in the sun with her eyes closed.

"You know it..." Argo mumbled, stretching out on Tonkii's back. I wanted to join her, but losing three of the four Cait Sith to the sun would probably have only encouraged Sinon to join us, because she was looking a little droopy-eyed.

The land had been reborn, and it resembled the beautiful images Urd had shown us. The roots of the World Tree spun and curved beautifully, supporting the almost immaculate land. If I hadn't known better, or literally watched it happen, I'd think this was the remnants of some ancient civilization. Waterfalls spilled down from the Well of Urd and fed into streams and lakes, and here and there some ancient buildings dotted the landscape. Tonkii let out a purring rumble, evidently pleased to have his old home back, and after we all uncovered our ears - seriously, that thing was loud - Sinon grinned. "He's happy," she said. She and Kirito grinned at each other, before more purring calls sounded from below us; we all looked down to see more of Tonkii's friends, all snorting and waving their elephant trunks around. Seems they all respawned when we revived Yggdrasil. As we flew overhead, the players below stared up at us in shock, some of them even dropping their weapons. I don't know if they could see Kirito clutching Excalibur, but it would be kinda funny if they finally realized that the person to get Excalibur was riding on one of their targets.

Leafa smiled and gently dropped to her knees, stroking Tonkii. "I'm happy, too," she murmured. "Isn't this great, Tonkii? Look, all your friends are waving! You see 'em? You're a popular guy." I leaned over and ruffled her hair, making her look up. "Thanks, Nick."

"Any time." While I might not have understood why she was so dead-set on saving this world, I had done so anyway because it would make her happy. And seeing my surrogate sister smile up at me like that made it all worth it. I looked over to see Kirito grinning at both of us fondly, and I just shrugged at him. I prepared to say something snarky in response to his widened grin, but a bright light started shining in front of us, and I felt the words die in my throat. Shame, too, they were perfect. Something about Kirito needing a sword the level of Excalibur to compensate.

We all turned to look at the source of the light; even Argo sat up from where she was basking in the warm rays of the sun. Those Cait Sith instincts can be a hell of a drug. The light grew, and when it faded Urd was hovering in front of us again. "You removed Excalibur from its plinth," she said, sounding almost happy. "The quest has been completed."

"Fuck yeah," I mumbled. "Quest is done, everything's saved, yay. Can we go home?"

Urd smiled, and I had the feeling she was looking at me. "Now that the sword which slices wood and iron -" I winced at that. "- is secure, Jotunheimr can return to its former glory, and you, my brave fairies, may return to your homes, knowing you have done a great deed today. It is all thanks to you and your bravery." She smiled again. "My younger sisters would also like to express their gratitude towards you."

She turned her head to the left, and another, smaller light shone forth. When it cleared, there was a mini-Urd standing there; most likely the Norn of the Present. "My name is Verdandi," the slightly shorter blond said. Other than her height, she looked pretty much the exact same as Urd. Same hairstyle and everything. "Thank you, oh brave fairy warriors. To think, I can gaze upon a green Jotunheimr again." She sighed happily. "Ah, it's like a dream." So maybe their speech patterns were a bit archaic and formal, but it kinda fit, since they were, well, y'know, ancient goddesses of the Norse. Or something like that.

A wind started swirling, forming a tornado, and we all looked over; Urd was looking at the center of the tornado, and I realized that this had to be her third sister, the Norn of the Future. And if Urd and Verdandi were that far apart in terms of height, theoretically, this one would be about our size. The sudden tornado split apart to reveal exactly what I expected - a young... woman? Girl? Fuck it, a young goddess stood in front of us, clad in more armor-like clothes. She was almost like a regular player; wearing a breastplate and a winged helmet, with her green clothes and the blond hair poking out from under the helmet she could almost pass for a Sylph if it weren't for her eyes. Those eyes were just a little bit too piercing to be human. I heard an audible gulp, and glanced over at Klein to see him staring up at the latest arrival, cheeks red. "And my name is Skuld," she said, smiling at all of us. "You have my thanks and respect."

Verdandi lifted a hand and a light shone in her palm for a second; Skuld did the same, but blew on the small glowing orb, turning it to shining glitter and sending the sparkles all over us. Great, now we have glitter on us and it'll never go away. Ever. Then a reward screen appeared in front of us, and I let out a very eloquent 'Grk'. That... that was a lot of Yrd. Like, the 'more than I make doing jobs for the Lords' kind of lot of Yrd. Okay, I'm now officially glad we took on this quest.

"My gift to you," Urd said, pointing at Kirito, "shall be the Holy Sword." The Excalibur in Kirito's hands glowed a brilliant white before just disappearing, and an item prompt appeared in front of him. At least he got his final little gift. He clenched his fist, grinning excitedly.

"Thank you, noble fairies," the three Norns intoned in unison. It was a little freaky, actually. "Until we meet again."

The quest cleared screen appeared, and I leaned my head back, feeling the sun against my face. "We finally cleared it," Kirito murmured. His shoulders slumped and he chuckled weakly, clearly exhausted by what we had gone through. Din and Yui high-fived, giggling as they celebrated their victory.

The Norns started flying away gracefully, their dresses fluttering in the wind. Then, to my surprise - though, it was hardly unexpected, really - Klein jumped up onto Tonkii's bone ridge and clenched his fists. "Um... Ah, excuse me, Lady Skuld?" he shouted. "Can I get your number?!"

All of us stared at him, though none of us really reacted beyond an intake of breath. Pina even cried out, sounding a little fed-up with Klein's constant hitting on women. Still, what _did_ come as a surprise was how Skuld stopped flying after her big sisters and turned to look over her shoulder at Klein. She smiled and waved, and as she did a stream of glittering light traced a path down to Klein. He smiled and pressed the light to his chest. Skuld just smiled again and turned to join her sisters, while Klein hugged that light to his chest. The Norns disappeared into the light, and I doubted we'd see them again, unless Cardinal generated another Norse mythology quest in Jotunheimr.

Still, I was shocked Klein had actually managed to hit up a goddess for her phone number, and successfully at that, and it wasn't until Argo gently pushed my jaw closed that I realized I had been gaping at the samurai. "Use your words, Ry," she said gently, flicking one of my ears.

It twitched, and I blinked several times. "That... Did he… I just... fucking... guh."

"Eloquent," Argo agreed with a smile.

Beside me, Liz smiled softly. "Right now," she said quietly, "I respect you more than ever, Klein." I did too. Sure, he opened the trap after I figured out it wasn't a trap, but that wasn't the important part - the important part was that he was going to open the cage whether it was a trap or not. He really did have a good heart, and despite all the shit Liz and I gave him, that was one of the things we both admired about him. "You can be a dork, but you got heart." I grinned at Klein's back, glad he was still clutching Skuld's gift to his chest. It wouldn't do for him to see us being nice to him. But still, I think he just got an internet girlfriend...

Later that day, near dinnertime, I arrived at the Dicey Cafe to see Kazuto directing Agil in installing several new cameras into the ceiling of his bar. I nodded to both of them before swinging my bag beside my favorite barstool - the one that was on the far right, closest to the wall - and taking a seat. "Yo, Rythin," Agil rumbled. "You here to help out with this little project of Kirito's?"

"I'm providing some of the code," I said with a grin. "And I'm providing the server for it to run on, so I figured I'd like to be here to make sure it works, and to fix anything that doesn't." I glanced over at the tables to see Sinon and Sugu sitting there, chatting quietly. Kazuto must have picked up the sniper before driving down here; I would have done the same for Asuna or Kana, but both assured me that they had their own methods of transportation. "Kazuto, we good to go?"

Kazuto nodded as Agil stepped down from the barstool. "Just about. Just need to patch this thing in..." He started mumbling about mechanical engineering that I quite frankly had no interest in whatsoever; my only job was to have the software do what it was supposed to do. He was the Mechatronics guy, he was the one that needed to get the hardware in proper order. "Right," he said a few minutes later. "Time to boot it up." He started up the program and we all moved over to see his screen; Sugu leaned her chin in one hand, while Sinon crossed her arms. "How's that, Yui?" he asked.

There was a tense few seconds where I panicked, thinking I hadn't managed to get the camera's feed interpreted correctly. Theoretically, we should be able to use three cameras to determine the absolute position of anything in the room, but I could have fucked up the math. "I can see perfectly, Daddy!" Yui's voice said, coming through Agil's laptop, and I sighed in relief. "And everything else is working just the same!"

"You good in there, Din?" I asked.

"No complaints here, Dad," the boy reported.

"Cool, but... what is it?" Sinon asked.

"We're turning real-time images of the cafe into mock 3-D images," Kazuto told her. Her face was blank for a second, before she wordlessly turned back to stare at the screen. "Then we're basically inserting those images into the server world Nick built for Yui and Din. They should be able to move the cameras, too." Another of my contributions; I'd already written the code for my own webcam to track me personally, so it really wasn't that hard to add being able to track two separate bodies. Basically just simulating the camera in the virtual world and connecting the instructions it gave to the one in the real world. "Okay," he said, slightly louder, "try moving it around. Slowly."

There was a brief argument between Yui and Din over who'd get to move the camera first, which Din lost. "Okay!" Yui chirped. Above us, the cameras started swiveling around; the little patch of three dimensional objects needed to be limited, because otherwise we wouldn't have enough processing power or memory to actually do all the displaying. It was a pain, really, and I desperately wished I could have had enough power to display everything, but that was going into things I really didn't want to touch. The computer screen followed as the camera panned, and I smiled as I watched Yui and Din fly around in the virtual space.

"If it's working right," Kazuto said, "then Yui and Din should feel like they're flying around the room."

Sinon looked up to stare at the moving camera. "I get it," she said. "Those cameras are acting as Yui and Din's eyes and ears." She looked back at us. "Gotta hand it to you two, that's pretty clever."

I raised the flat of my hand, and I watched as the camera panned over; in the virtual world, Din landed on my hand and sat down. "The only thing we're missing is them being in this world, really," I said casually, before raising and lowering my hand. "Right now, I've sorta made it so that the objects are kinda solid, so it's kinda like being in the room."

"What do you mean, 'kinda solid'?" Sinon asked, looking at me curiously.

I sped up the motion of my hand, and Din yelped as he passed through it. "If the motion is too fast, we start losing frames and that means that the object stops being solid."

"Could have warned me," Din grumbled, flying over to rejoin Yui.

"Kazuto's taking a class called Mecha... Mecha... Mechasomething," Sugu said.

"It's Mechatronics," Kazuto interjected smoothly, like they'd practiced that before. Probably had, if the discussion during breakfast this morning was a routine event.

"Like I was saying," Sugu said, leaning in, "he's taking this Mechathing class." Sinon leaned in as well. "He has to do a project, so he came up with this idea. But if you ask me, he's just doing it for Yui and Din!"

"You're spoiling me, Daddy!" Yui mock-scolded.

Din laughed. "Dad's the best! And so is Uncle Kirito!"

The girls laughed, while Kazuto and I sighed in helpless amusement. Nothing much we could say about that, really. Since we were spoiling them. Ah well, it was worth it.

Dinner that night was amazing - especially since we had convinced Agil to let us have the bar all to ourselves for the night, leaving us with the entire place to throw a party. There was salad, and bread, and delicious meat... I'm pretty sure Asuna must have ordered the good stuff, since it was all so delicious. I had to be careful, since I liked my weight where it was, but fuck it the food was too good I had to keep eating until I was stuffed. Everyone was chatting animatedly amongst themselves when I saw Sinon sitting against the wall off to the side, sipping her glass of soda slowly. "'Sup?" I asked calmly, snagging a seat next to her.

"Mm," she mumbled, staring off into the distance.

Sometimes she's so mature I forget she's only Sugu's age, and then something like this happens and I'm forcibly reminded. I sighed. "Alright, Sinon, spill. What's got your whiskers in a twist?"

Sinon started to say something, then stopped. "I..."

"I won't repeat any of this conversation to anyone," I said quietly. "I promise." It was a direct promise, ironclad. If I gave my word, I wouldn't break it.

Sinon studied me for a second, then sighed. "How can he not see it?" Ah. So this was about Kazuto, and by extension her reaction to him pulling her tail. I had thought it was just harmless teasing between friends, and that her joke with Excalibur had been enough to get him back, but apparently I had guessed wrong. "That every girl is... well..."

I sighed. "That every girl is head over heels for him?" Blushing, Sinon nodded. "Thing is, Sinon, he's really not that dense. Depending on how well you've hidden it, he might not know you're in love with him, but it's a fairly high probability that he's figured it out." It's times like this that I have to remember that Sinon was isolated for most of her school career, thanks to that stupid accident, and that under that calm controlled exterior was a vulnerable girl almost as starved for love as I had been. "But he's utterly devoted to Asuna, you know."

Sinon sipped her soda again. "Then... then why...?" she muttered when she could trust her voice again. I'd given her enough time to collect herself.

"Well, because he's such a nice guy, he won't say anything. Mainly to save your feelings," I said with a sigh. "He does that, for the ones where it's obvious - for Rika, and a few others. I don't know if he knows about Keiko, you, or Kana, but it's only a matter of time before you let something slip."

"Wait, Argo?" Sinon interrupted me. "She's in love with him? But I thought -"

"Of course. Closer to a crush, I think, but the feelings are understandably rather intense. Hell, if I were into guys, I'd probably be in love with him too. As it stands, though, he's just my best friend," I shrugged. "But as for how things stand with Kana, it's pretty simple. You don't forget your first love. Ever. And so there's still feelings there, and I accept that because I love her." I chuckled softly, letting my gaze drift over the grinning faces of my girlfriend and Keiko, to Asuna and Kazuto and Sugu. All my friends; my family. "It's convenient, in a way. If Kana ever wants kids, I won't be able to provide, so Kazuto'll have to do as stud." I broke off, noticing the weird look Sinon was giving me. "Beyond the bounds of our relationship?" Sinon nodded slowly, her facial expression not changing. "Gotcha. Ignore that last bit, then." I sighed, leaning back to stare at the ceiling, where I could see the cameras moving as Yui and Din flitted around the room. "Other than telling you to just hope it goes away, I don't know what else to tell you, Sinon. I'm not good with emotions. Did Kana tell you how we get together?"

"You were an idiot for a year, then finally admitted you loved her. I told her that the idiot part hadn't changed," Sinon said dryly.

"Yeah, that sounds about right," I said with a weary laugh. "I'll have to remember that phrase." I sighed and sat up straight, looking at her. "I'm not the right person to ask about stuff like this. If anything, I'd honestly suggest Agil. Guy's been married long enough, he should know how to do it right. But..." I trailed off, before shaking my head. "But enough of this maudlin despair," I told her, standing up. "C'mon, Shino, let's go enjoy the party. We've earned it."

Shino grinned at me. "Thanks, Rythin. For trying to help."

"Call me Nick," I said with a shrug.

"Nick, then. Thanks." I just grinned and moved back over, grabbing a seat that was empty and refilling a plate from the nearest dish. They were all so perfect, I didn't really care what the food was. My tastebuds were kinda shit anyway unless the tastes were overpowering, so I really just went by texture. Kana glanced at me as Shino and I rejoined the table, and I blinked at her. She tapped her wrist subtly - tell me later? - and I shook my head. She blinked, confused, and I briefly twisted my forefinger and middle finger - I promised - before shrugging - sorry. She smiled and nodded before answering a question that Rika had asked her.

"Nice job, guys!" Kazuto said, grinning, and the table chatter died down. "We got the Holy Sword Excalibur and Mjolnir, the Lightning Hammer!" He raised his glass. "Congrats! To 2025! To us!"

"To us!" the rest of us chorused.

"Hey, I was wondering," Shino said to Kazuto while the latter was busy munching some roast meat. "Why did they call it Excalibur in the game?"

"Huh?" Kazuto mumbled with his mouth full, prompting Asuna to sigh and shake her head. I just grinned slightly - that must happen often enough. "What do you mean, why?"

"Well," Shino said, looking up at the ceiling, "usually in the fantasy books and comics I've read it's always called Caliburn. Not Excalibur."

"Nerrrrd."

"Shut up, Nick! I will _hurt_ you!"

Heh. I've read those same books, not that I'd tell her. I like high fantasy, what can I say?

"Oh..." Kazuto shrugged. "I dunno."

"No way!" Sugu gasped, looking at Shino in shock. "You don't seem like someone who'd be a fan of fantasy books."

Shino just smiled, flushing slightly. "When I was in middle school, I pretty much lived at the library," she admitted sheepishly. "I spent all my time there reading books about King Arthur. Every one of them referred to it as Caliburn."

"Actually," Asuna said, "didn't the sword go by a lot of different names in those legends?"

"Depending on the Celtic language," Shino said.

"Din?" I prompted.

The laptop showed the image of the nav pixie swooping over to hover in front of us. "Aunt Sinon's right," he said. "A lot of the similar spellings come from different translations of the same word, but the different Celtic languages all have different words for it. A lot of the legends contain the same kind of weapon - an extremely sharp sword that is the blade of the rightful king. Caladbolg, Excalibur, Caledfwich, the list goes on."

"Thanks, kid."

Shino grinned. "The word 'caliber' is cool, because it's what you call the diameter of a gun barrel." Oh, so that's what it was. Huh. Good to know. Like, it kept popping up in my admittedly brief research into gun safety and stuff like that - brief being like two hours or something - and I'd never gotten around to actually looking up what it was. "And it's also how you describe the quality of a person's character," she said, giving Kazuto a sidelong glance. My friend actually stopped eating long enough to look at her.

Sugu grinned. "Thanks for the lesson, teach!"

"Sorry if I got carried away, there," Shino said with a grin.

Beside me, Kana and Rika exchanged a devious glance, and I felt a small current of dread at the matching mischievous grins that they both sported. Something was about to happen to somebody, and that somebody probably wouldn't enjoy that something. For some reason, I hoped I wasn't the somebody a sum total of something was somehow going to happen to. "So basically what you're sayin' is," Rika started as we all turned to look at her, "whoever owns Excalibur _has_ to be someone who's an exceptional person!" Yep, seems logical so far. Wait. Rika being logical? … _Rika_ being _logical_? This is frightening. And a little bit unnerving.

"Huh?" Keiko asked. "Who is? You mean Kirito?"

Rika grinned smugly, and Kana leaned forward. "Of course," my girlfriend purred. "And I'm certain he's so exceptional that he'd love to pay for dinner with some of that nice fat paycheck he got from his recent endeavors."

"Isn't that right?" Rika asked, both of the girls giving Kazuto a steady look that demanded he say yes. Honestly, I'd feel bad for him, except for the fact that this trap was executed so beautifully that he didn't even have time to try to escape.

"Uh..." Kazuto choked. All the others turned to look at him too, with various degrees of confusion and wonder. "Yeah," he said weakly, standing up. "I was saving it for a surprise, but yeah, totally." He grinned, though I noticed the corner of his lips were twitching uneasily. "This dinner's on me!" Everyone cheered happily at the announcement, and eventually Kazuto grinned, glad to see everyone having a good time. Hooray. Sorry, bro, but looks like you're not getting that computer after all.

Everything turned out okay in the end. And I'm sure that this is gonna be one of those memories that I can actually like when I look back at it.

* * *

 **And that's the end of the Calibur arc! Hooray! We made it!**

 **The actual myth, from the poem** ' _Þrymskviða'_ **(one reviewer thought it was based on the Ring Cycle, which was a bit bizarre; not questioning the taste, since Nick is in-universe a fan of Wagner, just that the whole Thrym thing should have been a hint)** : **Pretty much what we see here (kinda?). The Jotuns steal Mjolnyarnar. Thor is understandably less than thrilled about this. So, Loki asked Freya to lend him her cloak of feathers and flies off to Thrymheim where he asks 'Yo Thrym, you took the hammer?' and Thrym tells him 'fuck yeah I took the hammer. You can have it back if we get Freya because _daaaaamn,_ son'. Because Freya refuses to do it, citing that everybody would think she was a slut if she went with them to the Frost Giant castle, Thor is convinced to dress as her (the convincing being Loki going 'Shut up Thor, you're doing this.') And then they go to the wedding. Somehow, they buy the really shitty cross-dressing (Seriously, look up some images of it. It's almost embarrassing) and let Thor, with Loki as 'her' maid, in. Throughout the pre-wedding events, Thor doesn't really act like Freya (eats a whole ox, drinks a LOT of ale) and Loki takes bullshitting to an art form as he convinces the Frost Giants that this is totally normal behavior because 'Freya' has been fasting a whole week out of excitement, even though the Jotuns took the hammer like yesterday. During the wedding, Thrym hands 'Freya' the hammer and then Thor reveals himself and violence ensues.**

 **Kana is very interested in the reveal, by the way. Very, _very_ interested...**

 **Nick is slowly opening up to people in his life. That's good, right? He's starting to let people in; granted, these are people he knows and trusts implicitly, and they've all seen him at his worst and haven't left. So, maybe it's not so much progress as it is him being honest with himself. Who knows. I don't! Not much of Kana in this little arc, but that's to be expected, really, since this was more of a 'dungeon run, kill things, YAY!' segment. Kana will be featuring prominently in the Mother's Rosario arc, don't worry.**

 **It was never** _ **confirmed**_ **that Klein actually got Skuld's contact info, but I like to imagine that he did, either for being the only one willing to free Freya/Thor or just for having the balls to ask for it. I can see it now: every now and then, Klein heads down to Jotunheimr, takes Skuld out for coffee or something… He's got pictures of him and her on his phone... Might make that one of those omake thingies later.**

 **Many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.**

* * *

 **(Non-canon) Omake: Racing Horses**

"He's gaining on us!" Kirito shouted, glancing over his shoulder. Death Gun had grabbed that horse that I'd failed to destroy and was racing after us, pistol drawn and at the ready.

I swore and bared my teeth, glancing around. Death Gun's horse was faster than our buggy, so he'd catch us in a flat race. What assets do we have... Kirito is driving. He's unable to do anything other than that. Sinon is currently clutching her sniper rifle and having a panic attack, so that's out... That leaves me. And I don't have a ranged weapon besides the grenades, and they're only useful if I can time it. He's too far out to get caught in the explosion. "If only our buggy was faster than a horse," I growled. Hey. Hey, wait a second. "Sinon," I snapped, shaking her. Bad thing to do, yes, but I needed an answer. "How fast are the horses?"

She stared blankly at me. "I... I don't know," she told me, her voice quiet. "Faster than the buggies, that's all I know."

Hm. Well, it's worth a shot. "Kirito, I'm trying something stupid. It'll probably get me killed, so... nice knowing you."

"Rythin, wait!" But I'd already jumped out of the buggy, stumbling a few steps before breaking into a run.

Death Gun aimed down the sights of his pistol. _He really wanted to kill this girl himself, huh? Wonder why. Not like she's anything special. But Kirito. Oh, but Kirito... he's special, alright._ Beneath his mask, his lips curled in a sneer. _Bet you're gonna want to know my name this time!_

He was just about to pull the trigger when someone tapped on his shoulder. Swearing, he lowered the gun and looked over - before swearing again, this time in surprise. Rythin was running alongside him, grinning almost ferally. _How on Earth..._ "Neat thing, really," the man gasped. "Turns out? Speed builds can outrun a horse." With a cheery wave, he grabbed at his right arm. Death Gun had just a split second to recognize the flash of a knife before it was buried in his skull.

I laughed as Death Gun slumped forward, the horse veering to the side before it slammed into the nearest wall. I slowed down and came to a stop, shaking my head. I vaguely remembered racing through a forest with Kirito on a horse at one point. I can't believe that actually worked. Huh.


	17. Dating Start

**Chapter 17: Dating Start**

* * *

 **December 31** **st** **, 2025**

I was contentedly reading a book while lounging on my bed when I heard my phone ding.

Figures. I can't ever have two consecutive hours to myself without the world coming to an end. Sighing, I noted my place in my book and laid it down before giving my cat a loving stroke and standing up. He raised his head briefly, looking around the room and blinking sleepily before flicking his ears and putting his head back down on his paws, slipping back into sleep immediately. Damn cat. I wish I could fall asleep that easily, it would make things easier. "I'll be right back, kitten," I told him as I grabbed my phone and collapsed into my desk chair. "Just gotta..." I tapped the screen of the phone, waking it up. "...gotta take this." The sound had been the clip that played when I was being contacted through my connection to the Alternate world, what I'd taken to calling where Din and Yui lived. "Yo."

"Hey, Dad," Din said. "Got a message for you from Uncle Kazuto."

I blinked. What would Kazuto want? "Hit me."

Din nodded and cleared his throat. "'Hey, Nick'," he said, making an excellent attempt at mimicking Kazuto's voice. Not perfect, but I wasn't going to argue. "'I really need a favor. Do you think you and Kana could meet me and Keiko really really soon?'" Din paused and looked at me. When I waited patiently for him to continue, he shifted uneasily. "That's, um, that's everything."

Where _did_ he pick up the trick of appearing sheepish? I can guarantee Yui never taught it to him. "Great," I sighed. Kazuto knew full well I'd have to call him, if only to know the events that led up to this little message. If anything, he was being kind about it - giving the message through Din rather than just calling me directly like he normally did was a big hint to my mind, and he knew me well enough to know it would be a hint. And I knew that he knew to know that. ...Y'know? "This is going to be an interesting juggling act. Thanks for letting me know, Din." My son grinned at me and waved before closing the connection on his end. "Kazuto, what did you do?" I moaned, burying my face in my hands. "Aggghhhhh." I leaned back, dragging my fingers down my face. No, no, Nick, don't get tired. Instead, try to figure out what happened so you won't be surprised when you talk to him. In retrospect, that's probably why he had Din deliver the message, so that I could figure it out on my own. Okay, what information do we have? It's me and Kana meeting him and Keiko in a short time frame. And what does that tell us, self? Well, self, it tells us that he needs both of us to meet them. Not me, not Kana, me and Kana. Other information included in that little nugget is that we're meeting him and Keiko. So they'd already planned to meet and he wanted us to join them. Tomorrow was New Years. He wanted us to join them on New Year's Eve - did she ask him out on a date? ...That... I honestly... If anything, she... Eh, fuck it. I know the basics, I'll get the rest from Kazuto.

I hit Kazuto's speed dial and put the phone on speaker, listening to it ring as I stared at the ceiling. On my bed, my cat's tail twitched, and his paws flexed, and I grinned at him fondly. He seemed to be enjoying a dream. The phone connected, and I sat up straight. "Hey, Nick," Kazuto said almost sheepishly. "Sorry to bother you so late."

"Kazuto," I whined, "what did you do?" It was relatively late, I hadn't been sleeping well recently and so I was tired, and I don't even care if I was whining.

He chuckled. "I was taking a nap in the cottage, and when I woke up Keiko was sitting on the sofa." He sighed softly. "I think she was crying." Instantly, he had my full attention. If anyone made her cry, I was going to have words with them. Very, _very_ pointed words. Possibly along the lines of - "Before you start thinking about doing anything, don't worry about it," Kazuto said, and I blinked, realizing I had already begun clenching my fists. Whoops. "We talked it out, and she's okay now." Implying she hadn't been before? But, if it was their private little chat, I won't say anything, no matter how curious I am.

"So how does all this end up with me and mine having to meet you two soon?"

"That's, uh..." I could imagine the image - Kazuto looking away from the phone he had held up to his ear, scratching his cheek sheepishly. "She, uh, kinda made me promise to meet her for a date in an hour."

"Haahhhh..." The duration of the sigh surprised me. What prompted it? Oh, right, fucking _calling that shit_. "So you want to make it less awkward for you by dragging me and Kana in for the ride too?" There was silence on the other end of the line. "I'll talk to her, see if she's up for it. You owe me, though."

"Sure thing," Kazuto said, and there was relief in his voice. "Keep me updated?"

"You'll be the second to know after Kana decides," I told him seriously. "Because the first will be me." Kazuto chuckled. "Alright, I'll be back with the answer in about five minutes. Sound good?"

"Thanks, Nick," he said with relief.

The second the connection ended, I pushed back my chair and crossed to my closet, hand absently tracing the model of Sinon's sniper rifle I'd received as my victory prize. I wasn't wearing a shirt, which made getting changed for this little get-together a little easier. "Din, send Kana the highlights of that conversation," I said, knowing he'd listened in. "And this is one of those things that needs to be done quickly, so make sure she gets it, 'kay?"

"Yes, Dad," Din said. It's so great that he can help me out like this; it let me literally be in two places at once.

As I browsed through the relatively fancier shirts that I owned - mostly in the greyscale, though I had a navy polo that Kana had convinced me to get a while back - my phone rang, and I sighed. Crossing over to the desk, I hit accept on the call. "Hey, Kana," I said. "You're on speaker and I'm going through my closet right now."

"So let's make sure I know what's going on," she said. "Keiko asked Kazuto out on a date in an hour, and he wants us to join them so that he's not alone with her."

"More because it'll make things less awkward, I think," I replied absently as I pushed some of the shirts to the side. "And because he's not a jerk, but he's not going to really let her think she has a chance." It might have been cruel to say that, but it was the truth. I'm still not entirely sure whether Keiko's attitude toward Kazuto was hero worship, a form of sibling love similar to how I felt about Sugu, or an actual crush - either way, she cared about him, and I didn't like having to say that about someone I liked.

"Mm," was Kana's response. "Yeah, an hour should give me enough time to get ready. If Keiko can do it, so can I. Just message me the location once Kazuto gives it to you, okay?"

"Yes'm." Should I wear the gray shirt or the navy? Or just a regular shirt?

"Oh, and Nick, since I know you'll be wearing dark pants, wear the gray shirt." Answers that question. "See you in an hour."

"Love you."

"You too." The call closed, and I grabbed the shirt she had picked out, throwing it on without hesitating. After all, Kana had a better sense of what looked good than I did, and I wasn't going to question her in the slightest.

That bit done, I tapped my phone and called Kazuto. He connected on the second or third ring, which told me he was waiting for the call. "Alright, Kazuto," I sighed, "we're in."

There was a relieved laugh. "Nick... Thanks." I sighed - he knew exactly how much I hated going out in public. "You'll tell Kana that, too, right?"

"Mm-hmm. Where's our location?"

"Ikebukuro," my friend replied. "It shouldn't take too long, though, since Keiko is going to visit her family after the date." Mm. I wasn't going to ask, but if he was going to offer the information... "Well, I'll see you there," he said, and hung up.

"Yeah," I mumbled, shaking my head as I finished getting dressed. "Sure." Now to message Kana, actually get to Ikebukuro, figure out what we were probably going to be doing... Ugh. Well, I'm just glad he gave me an hour to plan and plot rather than about fifteen minutes, which is the advance warning I usually got when he decided 'Oh hey, Rythin, let's go fight a dungeon' and I'd have to drop all my little plots and bargains to go try to kill Genoscythe The Worm or whatever the boss was. Not that I'm complaining, really, it was fun to fight the bosses, but still. A little more warning would be nice, bro. Eh, he's learning. Then again, Keiko probably sprung it on him with about just as much warning as I got, so I can't complain too much.

After I arrived at the destination, I just found a bench that was empty and sat down, resting comfortably; it was cold, but after Jotunheimr the real world just wasn't that cold anymore. Maybe going there actually had served a point beyond getting Kazuto the best shiny weapon in the game - no, no, Nick, no. Down that path lies more madness. ...Wait. Wasn't that a good thing? I liked madness. Madness made the world interesting. Ah, but at the same time, I needed to be not mad or I'd be unable to function with the others. Hhh... The sacrifices I had to make when I was trying to be human. Or maybe I shouldn't call them sacrifices, because I wasn't losing anything and gaining so much in return. And maybe I should turn my music up because otherwise I really am going to go insane, mad, nutso, crazy, and other pithy thayingth. Mad in the sense of the regular use of the term, rather than the irrational anger I found myself afflicted with so often. And c'mon, Nick, you know better than to mope about things like this, since it just drags you into a hate spiral. You know what would be better than a hate spiral, Nick? A spiral of awesome. A spiral of awesomeness that could make gigantic robots combine into gigantic-er robots. Pfft. Like that would happen.

So instead of the dark thoughts, what else is there to think about? I could always try to figure out more ways of calling Kazuto an idiot, but that starts to get old after a while, and I spent a bit on it on the way here so I could ignore the weight of the other passengers on the train. I guess I was lucky most people had already traveled to where they needed to be. Hmm... If I were a normal hot-blooded guy, I could fantasize about what Kana would be wearing. But that's stupid and pointless because I don't care about that, so... Crap. Uh. Uh, uh, uh... What should I think about?

I had about a half-second warning before a shadow fell over me - the only warning was the gradually approaching clacking of boots against the pavement. I looked up the second the shadow touched my face to see Kana standing in front of me, grinning. Did I seriously just think about things to think about to kill enough time? Eh, I've done worse. With a smile to match hers, I stood up and gave her a hug, grateful for her presence and metaphorical if not literal warmth. "Good to see you, Nick," Kana murmured. "It's been what, three days?"

I let go and grinned. "And each day felt like a year, spent away from your beautiful visage."

"Flatterer," she mock-scolded, giving me a fond pat on the head. Then she frowned, taking in my appearance. I raised an eyebrow; I was wearing what she told me to wear, with black pants that were relatively nice. Finally, she sighed. "Nick, your hair is a mess, you know that?"

Was it? "...Uh..." At her flat look, I grinned reluctantly and ran a hand through my admittedly disheveled hair, finger-combing it. "I do kinda need a haircut." I shrugged helplessly. "I mean, I've just been pushing it off, since it wasn't really pressing, and then next thing I knew it was this long." It had managed to get long enough to fall over my ears, though it was naturally wavy enough to stay out of my eyes as long as I made a token effort to move it over to the side after a quick shower.

"Did you even comb it before coming out?" Before I could even open my mouth, she shook her head and said, "Of course not, you're you. Sit."

I blinked at the sudden order. "Eh?"

"Sit," she repeated, pointing at the bench. "I have a brush with me, and I'll fix your hair before Kazuto and Keiko arrive."

I could have complained or refused to sit down, but I didn't, instead deciding to just sit down and let Kana get to work; I recognized the set look on her face as the one she wore when presented with a particularly challenging bit of research for info, and I knew that I'd lose any argument. It was just faster to accept my defeat gracefully and let her start, so I shrugged and sat down, leaning back until my back was pressed against Kana's chest. Humming to herself, she rummaged in her purse before pulling out a brush and beginning to brush my hair in long, smooth strokes. Despite the occasional twinge of pain as she encountered and wrestled with a particularly stubborn tangle, it was... soothing to just sit back, my back pressed against her warm stomach, following her orders as she turned my head this way and that and brushed my hair out. Was it strange, that I enjoyed giving up my free will to her like that when I couldn't stand being told what to do by anyone else? Or was I just enjoying not having to think, enjoying mindlessly following orders?

Eh, whatever, felt nice either way.

* * *

I ran the brush through Nick's hair a few more times before I was satisfied; I reached forward to turn his jaw left, then to the right, and then finally nodded when my closest examination determined he was presentable. "Are you done yet?" he grumbled, slightly sullenly. He'd seemed relaxed enough earlier, so this was most likely him grumbling because he felt like he hadn't grumbled enough or some such silliness.

"It'll have to do," I said with a sigh, putting my brush back in my purse and sitting down next to him. "So, Nick, we have a few choices here."

He blinked and tilted his head slightly - I'm pretty sure he has no idea he's doing it in the slightest. It's actually a pretty easy tell for when he's genuinely confused about something and not just playing dumb. "What are you talking about?"

I smiled mischievously and started twirling my finger in a lock of the hair at the back of his neck, curling it around my finger. "Well, you _could_ get a haircut, or you could let it grow out a bit and we could try out a few new styles..."

Nick shifted slightly. "Yeah I think I'll schedule the haircut pretty soon," he said hurriedly, blinking rapidly three times in that way he did when he was making a mental note. But I hadn't missed that brief flash of thought before he shifted; I'd been mentioning something like that every now and then ever since I'd seen Kirito in GGO. If I was guessing his thoughts correctly, it would probably be along the lines of 'maybe I should just go along with it, since it seems like she's interested'. I see this ending one of three ways - he enjoys the jokes too much and always finds some way to say no, he shrugs and goes along with it and doesn't enjoy it, or he does and does. I'm honestly not sure which option would be more fun, one or three.

"There's no rush," I purred, snuggling next to him. "I wouldn't mind you growing it out a bit, honest."

He looked down at me and grinned slightly. "I don't know," he said, and I could feel his voice rumbling through his chest. It was like touching a speaker; the vibrations of the sound were felt along with the sound itself. "I seem to remember someone telling me they preferred short hair."

I grinned up at him. "I'm growing _mine_ out," I pointed out. "And besides, if you wanted short hair you would have gone out with Rika instead." Not that he'd have ever had a chance - her heart was set firmly towards Kazuto at the moment, and Nick was as dense as a stack of bricks when it came to love, albeit slightly more adorable.

Not replying, Nick just casually reached out and wrapped an arm around me, and I felt heat rise in my cheeks; he'd become a lot more physical recently, during the few times that we were alone together. Not in any way that could be construed as forward, of course, but he was quicker to hug me these days, or to offer his hand for mine when we were walking side by side. Whatever the cause was, and I'm fairly certain it had something to do with what triggered his more mercurial moods as of late, I didn't mind. I liked it when he hugged me. He was still a little awkward about it, where it took him a few seconds to react when I hugged him or he'd be hesitant about reaching out to me, but he was getting better.

After several minutes of just sitting there, noticing but ignoring the looks the people walking by gave us, my watch beeped. I glanced at it, then nodded. "Alright, Nick," I said, standing up and stretching. "It's been an hour, Kazuto and Keiko should -"

"Hey, you two," a voice said, and I stopped mid-word to turn around and grin smugly at Kazuto. He seemed relatively dressed up, though it was still casual enough that he could claim it wasn't a date.

"Honestly," I said with a shake of my head, still giving him that wide smirk. "We aren't even your date, and you're making us wait."

"Kazuto, remember that you owe us for this," Nick grumbled. At the reminder, my grin just grew smugger. I always _liked_ favors; they were so convenient to cash in when I needed something. And I was, first and foremost, a businesswoman. I mean, going on a date with Nick? Worth it. Getting essentially paid to do so? You couldn't possibly stop me. And Nick evidently thought the same way, if his own smirk was any indication. "Oh, the payout for this is going to be grand..." he drawled.

Kazuto looked back and forth between us, paling slightly. He started to say something, but Keiko chose that moment to rush up, panting. "Hi, Kazuto, sorry I'm - oh! Nick, and Kana! What are you two doing here?" She had dressed up nicely, wearing a cute pink skirt under her heavy winter coat - seems she's leaning more towards the 'crush' or 'hero worship' rather than 'big brother'. I smiled slightly and just added that little bit of information to my mental vault, reminding myself to write it down when I got home.

I glanced at Nick, silently telling him to keep his mouth shut if he knew what was good for him - a look I'd taught him well - and then turned back to Keiko. "Enjoying the day," I said simply. "It's a great day for a date, don't you think?" Keiko looked a little suspicious, but she nodded with a grin as she grabbed Kazuto's arm, slipping her own into the crook of his elbow. It was almost adorable, the way she took action like that. She glanced at Nick, her eyes immediately picking out the fact that he looked presentable rather than his usual rumpled 'I just rolled out of bed and didn't care enough' look; she glanced back at me, an eyebrow raised slightly, and I grinned slightly. She grinned back.

"If you ladies are done with the female language," my boyfriend said with a grunt as he stood up, "I believe Kazuto mentioned something about getting dinner." It was getting rather late, and I was starting to get hungry. I had a sandwich for lunch, but it hadn't stuck around very long. "That is, if you two don't mind us joining you?" he added a second later, the picture-perfect example of innocence. It was kinda weird, actually. Half the time he had a silver tongue, while the other half he was as blunt as a shovel. Still, when it came to actual manipulation he was better than me, at any rate, though I was better in terms of information gathering and dissemination. He had his skills, I had mine, and we complemented each other very well. That is, if I'm to be entirely honest with myself, part of the reason I fell for him in the first place.

"I don't mind," Kazuto said instantly, though not in a way that should let Keiko know he asked us to show up. "How about you, Keiko?"

"Um, I don't mind if you don't!" the younger girl said, smiling up at Kazuto.

"Well, that settles it," Kazuto said with a chuckle. "You two are welcome to come along."

When we got to Kazuto's chosen destination, Keiko and I sighed simultaneously. "Really, Kazuto?" I said, shaking my head. "Honestly, after all those dates with Asuna, I'd think you'd be better at it than this." If what Asuna tells me is true, they usually just end up going to the Dicey Café, so maybe I shouldn't be too surprised.

"What?" he asked, frowning in confusion as he looked around, before glancing at Nick; my boyfriend just shrugged minutely in return. Of course Nick wouldn't understand why we were so disappointed in Kazuto. "What's wrong with the mall?"

Keiko opened her mouth to say something, but the words seemed to stick in her throat, and she just sighed. "The mall? Nothing," I said for her. "Eating a dinner with your date in the food court in the mall? Plenty." Kazuto just frowned in that cute way of his, and I sighed. "Never mind. You two go get us some food, and we'll get a seat." Nick and Kazuto nodded; Nick probably knew what I wanted to eat, and Keiko managed to find her voice long enough to tell Kazuto that anything was fine. As they disappeared off into the crowd to get the food, I gently steered Keiko through the food court and sat her down at a table, taking a seat across from her.

"He..." she started to say before her words failed her again.

"I know," I said, sighing.

"But..." She pointed around, mouth moving wordlessly before she just sighed and let her head hit the table with a light thunk as she took off her coat.

"I know," I repeated, kindly. "He's an idiot, and Nick's not much better."

We sat there in companionable silence for a while, Keiko quietly muttering something under her breath for a while before she sat up. I studied her for a second, then smiled. I think she'll be okay now that she's gotten over the sudden disappointment of realizing Kazuto wasn't really treating this like a real date. I'd tried to soften the blow for her a little bit, but there was only so much I could do for the younger girl. Before long, though, Nick and Kazuto returned, each carrying a tray of food; they looked around, and after a second Nick spotted us and gestured with his chin. They approached and placed the trays down, Kazuto on my left and Nick on my right. I glanced over what Nick had chosen and smiled; it was exactly what I would have ordered had I done so. Well done, dearheart. "Sorry if this isn't up to the standards that you're used to," he murmured quietly to me.

"It's exactly what I wanted," I told him. "Thank you." He smiled slightly and started eating his own food in that single-minded way that he had.

While Kazuto and Keiko talked quietly and Nick ate, staring off into space as he did, I studied the people around us, making up little stories about their lives. That lady over there, the one with the high-heels and fur-lined coat, she was a married woman that was searching for something to give her husband. But her husband was cheating on her, only she didn't know that! And that group of girls, giggling a few tables over, were all friends on break from school, trolling for boys, though the one that was only giggling because the rest were giggling had a crush on the slender girl sitting across from her. I smiled slightly at that thought, waving away Nick's questioning look with a small shrug.

And then there was that one girl, standing up shyly from two tables away where her two friends were gesturing her to go on, she had spotted someone in the food court she liked the look of and she was going to... She was going to... My train of thought slid to a halt when she shyly approached us, one of her hands smoothing her hair back in a nervous habit as she glanced back at the girls at her table. Wait, was I _right_? Instantly, I glanced at Keiko to see that she had noticed the girl approaching our table; as one, we turned to look at Kazuto, who was busy slurping up a noodle. Wow, maybe Nick really was right.

"U-um..." the girl stammered as she stopped - I blinked in amazement as she stopped in front of Nick, clasping her hands. "Hi! What's your name?" It was interesting how her personality shifted slightly, but I'm willing to bet - if what I'd guessed from what I'd seen was true - that she'd had plenty of practice talking to guys, it was just initiating the conversation that was awkward. She was definitely pretty enough that she would likely have guys lining up to date her.

Nick blinked and paused while munching a fry. Wordlessly, he looked at Kazuto, then at the girl, pointing to himself as if to say 'Who, me?' When the girl's smile widened, he shrugged and said, "Me? I'm Nick."

The girl leaned forward. "So, Nick, do you think you could help me out here? I kinda need a guy's opinion."

"I'm a little busy at the moment," Nick said, not moving from his seat. "What exactly do you need a guy's opinion on?"

The girl blinked, obviously not used to being turned down. The best part is, Nick probably doesn't even realize he did. "Never mind," she said, straightening up with a huff. "Don't get up on my account, I can always ask someone else." She stalked away, going back to her table where she sat down, her friends giggling as they patted her on the back.

Nick blinked at where the girl had been standing before shaking his head and grabbing another fry. "What was that all about?" he asked, pointing with the fry as he tilted his head slightly. Keiko looked at me incredulously, somehow surprised that Nick had been oblivious. Well, at least I'll never have to worry about there being another woman, I guess. "She didn't even ask for Kazuto's name."

When I just sighed and shook my head, she giggled and poked his shoulder. "Actually, she was flirting with you, Nick," she said through her giggles. "And you just shot her down without even thinking about it."

He stared at Keiko silently, just blinking as he processed what she'd told him. "Well, how was I supposed to know that?" Nick finally asked petulantly.

"If she'd leaned over any further, her breasts would have fallen out of her top," I said dryly. "That was your first clue."

As the others laughed, Nick flushed slightly, red creeping up the back of his neck. I knew he didn't like it when people laughed at him, but it really was kinda funny, and I knew he'd understand that. "Yeah, yeah, laugh it up," he grumbled, a grin twitching at his lips, and I let my smirk widen. Yeah, he'd be fine. "Just know that I'm plotting your downfalls."

"We'll never see it coming," Kazuto assured him. "Thanks for giving us the heads up, though." The boys grinned at each other, though Nick's was shadowed slightly. I gave my boyfriend a closer look, and frowned slightly; there were some shadows under his eyes, though his glasses did a fantastic job of hiding them. His eyes seemed a little more tired than usual, though if I were to be fair to him he always looked a little sleepy unless he was focusing on something important. "Kana, is everything okay?"

I shook myself and grinned at Kazuto. "Nothing that you won't have to pay to know." On my other side, Nick snickered slightly, and I was reassured that he'd be okay.

After our oh-so-glamorous meal, Nick and I waved goodbye to Kazuto and Keiko as they boarded the train heading to Keiko's grandfather's house; Kazuto had promised the girl he'd ride with her for a while, so that explained all of that. After the train left, we wandered around for a bit, hand in hand; before long, Nick sighed and looked at me. "Well, catling, what do you want to do now? I'm starting to get cold."

I grinned at him. "Well, we could always go back to my place to warm up. I've got this really cute pink -"

"So," Nick said, interrupting me with a smile on his face. "Have you heard anything about the major raid for the 25th Floor Boss?" I just snickered at his almost desperate gambit to change the topic. "Don't worry, you'll be paid for any information once I get in the game."

Well, that part was fulfilled, so it was just up to me to fill my part of the deal. "I'll have to check. Din, mind opening up the chart for us?"

Nick's phone dinged, making an interesting 'da-dank' sound, and he pulled it out before tapping the screen. "Okay, Mom," Din said, glancing up at us as he placed a card in his little world. "Give me a second so I can finish beating Yui at this card game, okay?"

"Like you're going to win!" I heard Yui yelp. Her voice was faint, so she didn't have the connection open, but she must have been right across from Din. A few seconds later, I heard Din sigh with frustration, and Yui cheer happily. "Told you!"

"Challenging her?" Nick asked Din, a small smile on his face. "Come now, Din, I thought you knew not to challenge someone to a game you couldn't win."

"Stop corrupting him," I told Nick. Then I smiled at Din. "As long as you two had fun, that's what important."

"It was fun, but I still say information is better at reading people than knowing how they think," Din grumbled, obviously directing the last comment towards Yui. The little girl replied with something inaudible, and Din rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Mom, you wanted the chart, right?"

After a second, Din rolled a board from offscreen - it had a bunch of notes pinned to it, as well as images and red string connecting them all together. When he saw it, Nick raised an eyebrow. "Does that string really help?" he asked calmly, studying the board closely. Helpfully, Din expanded the board, letting us read the notes.

"No, not really," our son said with a shrug.

I grinned. "But it looks cool, right?"

"That it does," Nick murmured as he read one of the notes, lips twitching. "Hm. Well, Kana?"

I took his phone and had Din start at the top. "Well, first off," I said, "there've been some guilds and groups that have given a shot at the boss already, but obviously none of them have succeeded." Nick started to say something, and I raised my hand. "I know, I know, you don't want to be spoiled on the boss itself, so no details. I remember." His mouth closed and he grinned. "Right. Basically, what we know so far is that a coalition of Salamanders and Undines are joining forces to fight it." That group together would imply that it's vulnerable to fire and water magic, or at least it will to Nick.

"Morty wants another win, does he?" Nick purred, staring at the phone though his eyes were distant. "Any offers for Trinity to join the battle?"

I shook my head. "Sorry, dearheart, nothing. No messages, no messengers, no nothing."

He sighed, before his lips curled into a sharp grin. I felt a shiver run down my spine; that grin rarely meant good things for whoever he was thinking about. "So I get to drop in uninvited, it seems." He shrugged dismissively. "I won't get paid, but it'll be just a regular fight. I've been meaning to have one of the ones where I get to stab something, rather than command from the rear." I knew he enjoyed being the Tactician, but he wasn't always that part of him. Still, if what I'd heard about the boss was correct, this could have an interesting outcome. "Time for it?"

"I've checked, and as far as I can tell they're meeting up sometime around eight?" I glanced at my clock. "So, in about an hour and a half." My grin grew a little smug. "More than enough time for us to head back to my house. I promise, it won't take longer than that."

Nick glanced at me, indecision warring in his eyes, and I smiled as prettily as I could manage. Finally, he sighed. "Y'know what, Kana?" He grinned at me. "Sure. Why not. It might be fun." Yes! Oh, man, we're gonna have _so_ much fun. "On a few conditions."

"Name them," I said instantly. Yeah, there was no way I'm letting this slide.

"Nobody gets told about this. That means nobody." I pursed my lips; it wasn't an unquestionable request, though it did mean I couldn't regale the others with tales of how pretty Nick looked. Of course, that didn't mean I couldn't - "And no records of this. You can save a video, or take pictures if you really want, but nobody ever gets to see them. That means no uploading it to the internet." He glanced at his phone. "So long as Din promises the same thing, he can watch." I nodded solemnly, my mind already checking to see if there was any information I could extract out of that, and he smiled at me. "I'm not making the language air-tight, because I trust you, Kana, Din." ...Well, darn. Now I kinda feel bad.

I smiled at him. "Don't worry, Nick, nobody will ever know anything that happens." I frowned slightly, looking at him. "Is this a one-time agreement?"

"For now," Nick said, running a hand through his hair. I winced as he managed to ruin all my hard work in a heartbeat - though the thought of getting to fix it in other ways made me smile. Then he shrugged and grinned. "Other times will occur on a case-by-case basis." Well, that wasn't a no. Close enough for me, I guess.

* * *

As I felt my virtual body appear, I opened my eyes and stretched, reveling in feeling my back pop. I guess going along with Argo had been fun enough, really. Eh, whatever, I'll think about it later. Not like I really had any masculinity to feel threatened over - though I'll admit I did make a relatively pretty girl. Argo was strangely good at making a guy look like a girl; I wonder how much practice she's had at it.

I flicked my tail, chasing the thoughts away. Now, now, Rythin, focus on the fight. It's been a while since I've actually fought a boss alone without any of the other members of Trinity to back me up, so it'll be a good reminder of fighting solo. Not that I was rusty by any stretch of the imagination, I just needed to feel the thrill of the hunt again. Well, to do that I need to head up to Aincrad. It had been over the Undine lands about two hours earlier, so that would mean... Salamander territory? Hm. That'll be fun. Though I should be able to just use the Yggdrasil Warp Gate... Know what? No. I'm invading the Salamander territory. Morty can bite me since I'm there to help.

As I flew, high in the sky and feeling the sun beat down on my back - fuck me it's hot, the blazing sun doesn't feel as nice as it does in Freelia - when a small squad of Salamander knights flew up to greet me in the Salamander fashion. That being, of course, surrounding me with their swords and lances out, all ready to try skewering me if I make a threatening move. To make them happy, I just stopped to hover in midair, arms folded and the tip of my tail twitching. That small part was the only part of me moving, and it was probably the only thing that betrayed how little I cared about their threats. "Hello, lizards," I said calmly. "How can I help you?"

"Hi, kitty," one of them said, and I marked him as either the leader or the easiest to rile up. "You're trespassing, you know that?"

"Oh?" I sighed. "Technically, since I'm not affiliated with any of the races I'm not, but I'll just give you the benefit of the doubt. Unaffiliated player, Rythin, at your service." I sketched out a mockery of a courtly bow, grinning smugly. "Now, would you all mind returning the favor?"

"72nd Salamander Knight Squadron, at your service," the first guy said, and I confirmed his position as leader as well as attempting to hide a small grin at the either deliberate or unthinking mimicry. "Now, kitty, I have to ask. What on earth would possess you to come back to our territory?"

"Aincrad's up there," I said, pointing up in the sky. "And I need to get to Aincrad. Seems like a pretty simple cause and effect relationship to me," I shrugged.

"There's a warp gate in Yggdrasil City or Alne or wherever ya came from," one of the other ones said. Gruff-voiced, probably naturally, though it wasn't hard to fake voices in this game. I'd done it on occasion.

"And I didn't feel like using it," I said with a shrug. "What can I say, I enjoy flying."

The leader of the squadron stared at me through his helmet for a while, then visibly shrugged. "If you're going anywhere else in Salamander territory, I'd very much appreciate it if you let us know so we can arrange an escort." I raised an eyebrow, and he had the grace to shift sheepishly. "We've been attacked by the Sylphs recently, and some of the more... violent Salamander squadrons might attack on sight, especially since the Cait Sith are allied with the Sylphs right now."

I grinned. "No problem, gentlemen and, if any are present, ladies." There was a round of laughter, and I caught some of the Salamanders looking at one of the Knights behind me. Huh. Turns out there was one after all. Or at least a Salamander that's been repeatedly taunted about being a lady. Eh, whatever. "I have no intention of doing anything other than heading up to the 25th Floor of Aincrad and then assisting the Salamanders and Undines with their boss fight."

"Alone?"

I turned to the one that had spoken - a female, surprisingly enough. The Knight they'd been looking at earlier? "I'm a merc," I said with a shrug, my ears twitching. "I go to where the coin is." I turned back to the leader and nodded cordially. "Thank you for your concern, and I'll put in a good word for you all with Eugene if I see him." They'd earned that much, at least - they did their jobs, weren't threatening jerks about it, and weren't, well, dicks. So basically they've impressed me slightly and I reward those that do so. "72nd Salamander Knight Squadron, yes?" The leader nodded and thanked me, and then with a single barked order they broke from around me and flew back down along their patrol. If I had to guess, there were more of the 72nd Salamander Knight squadron that hadn't stopped from their patrol, just in case I was a decoy. Tail still twitching, I resumed my flight towards Aincrad, glad nothing had gone wrong. It would have been inconvenient to have to refill my health and magic after slaughtering the guards, after all.

When I arrived on the 25th Floor, the main settlement was naturally buzzing with excitement as players restocked on potions, repaired their equipment, and just killed time by chatting with others. I saw most of the players dressed in red speaking with other red players and blue with blue, though there were the occasional larger groups that had spread out to include members of both of the main factions. The maximum number of players that could participate in a raid was sixty-three, but I could only spot about thirty that were clearly part of the Salamander-Undine task force. I assumed that any large pockets of players were part of the task force as well, though that only brought the total up to forty or so. These were likely the grunts, and I needed to meet with the upper echelon of the brass, like Eugene and whoever the Undine commander was. I should probably know things like that - but then again, that's what I rely on Argo for, which now that I think about it is probably not a good thing but on third thought fuck it I don't care I have enough money. I took wing, ignoring the startled look I got from the Salamanders and Undines near me, and flew towards the location of the Labyrinth's entrance. That, at least, I knew.

The Labyrinth was based on some sort of hollow tree, overgrown with flora; moss and tree roots were everywhere, although my footing was always sure. I had previously mapped out the location of the boss room with Silica and Liz, though that was more a resource gathering run than a boss-fighting run. Still, I kinda liked this place; it was quiet and peaceful when monsters weren't trying to kill me. I always did enjoy the natural look more than the man-made dungeons or stone towers, and I'd often thought that if I could swing it I'd like to live in the forest one day. Peaceful, away from people, out in untouched nature... So long as I had Kana, my twenty-first century amenities, and a good way to get groceries, I'd be set.

When I arrived in the boss room - a large open chamber, with sunlight shining in from a hole leading to the outside world. Stumps and tree roots dotted the clearing, though the center was clear - I didn't announce myself, instead just finding a nice quiet spot to lean. I was cloaked by my Illusion spells, and I saw no reason to announce my presence yet. Instead, I could listen and watch and try to get a feel of how the Salamanders and Undines were going to handle being around each other. I recognized Eugene and his second, Kagemune, and with a sudden surge of 'oh, yeah, duh' I realized I knew the Undine leader and second. It was Thinker and Yulier, the pair from the Army we had rescued in Aincrad back when Yui was alive. Well, her... she was... kinda alive? An instance of the Mental Health Program AI that hadn't been running on my laptop originally? I... fuck it. I don't care. She was alive to me, and that's what ma - I inhaled sharply, stiffening, and twitched violently as a chill ran down my spine. I licked suddenly dry lips and smiled. "Hello, Bloody Mary," I murmured.

A ripple of air stirred behind me, and I turned my head to see a woman dressed almost regally appear behind me, a thin stiletto hanging off of her hip. "Greetings, Tactician," she said, and even her voice sounded cultured. Naturally, it was fake - everything about her was just as bloodthirsty as I was. Her real name was Magdalene, and once I made the connection between the source of the name and her preferred manner of simply appearing behind someone before running her stiletto through their throats, like a phantom or apparition, I knew exactly why her title was Bloody Mary. She was a master of Illusion magic, her smoky skin marking her as a Spriggan; unlike me, who used Illusion magic for distractions and avoidance, she literally went invisible and undetectable to all senses except the most powerful of detection spells. She was on a whole different level in terms of illusions, though in terms of sheer power, I would win. "Are you here to join the Salamanders and Undines in their attempt against the boss?"

"Of course," I replied, not even surprised she had seen through my weak cloak. With a snap, I dispelled it and grinned as the assembled Salamander and Undine officers jumped at my sudden appearance. "I take it you're here for the same reason?"

She smiled slightly. "It interests me. Does it surprise you that there are other mercenaries present?"

"Not particularly," I said with a shrug. "It's a good gig. How many others are here?"

"There's myself, naturally, and I believe the Salamanders have already hired the Phoenix." The Phoenix, Flamel, was a Salamander player famed for their control of both fire and water magic, particularly buffs and manners of rebirth. It was nearly impossible to kill him if he'd had enough time to prepare - though from what I'd heard, he generally didn't enjoy fighting bosses. Then again, a job was a job. Magdalene tapped one slender finger against her chin. "And I have one of my compatriots with me, Ruminol." Ruminol was one of the more powerful Leprechauns, though his racial bonuses didn't really come into play. No, the Third Fate was powerful because he swung a massive scythe around like it was a child's toy - his blade was a legendary weapon, on par with Eugene's Demon Sword Gram or Kirito's Excalibur. Granted, Excalibur was the strongest sword in the game, but Ruminol's Death Dealer was one of the few weapons with a chance - albeit low - for an instant kill on contact that couldn't be protected. Ruminol's fighting style, then, naturally revolved around raising his chance to do so by using light strikes that struck often.

"It seems I'm in good company," I said politely. Magdalene smiled but didn't respond to the flattery otherwise; she looked older than I was, but looks were deceiving in this game if the player wasn't known to be an SAO survivor. "I must confess, I'm surprised you and Ruminol are here." Her magic wouldn't be very useful against the boss, because it relied almost solely on being able to backstab the opponents, and most bosses were immune to Ruminol's instant death ability.

Still, she smiled. "It has been a time since we have fought a boss, and Ruminol and I felt the itch. I'm certain you, of all people, understand." It wasn't surprising; I was the leader of a very powerful merc company, and other mercenaries would obviously look up on me. And if she'd done her research, she'd most likely seen videos of me tearing through weaker players that had stood in the way of my killing their leader, a mad bloodthirsty laugh rolling out of me.

"That I do." I nodded to the group of officers - Eugene and Kagemune, Thinker and Yulier, and then two more of each race. "I see there's only eight of them. Even numbers to make it fair?" Magdalene nodded. "I see. And, would there happen to be a dedicated 'merc party' that I will be joining?"

Again, Magdalene nodded. "I am the leader. Is that an issue?"

I narrowed my eyes. "Am I still free to enact my own strategies?"

"But of course," Magdalene assured me. "The party is simply so that the, ah, free mercenaries do not take up too many spaces and leave room for the rest of the force." I nodded. "You agree to join the party?" I shrugged, miming that I really didn't have much of a choice, and she smiled slightly. "Very well." She sent me the offer, and I accepted, seeing both her and Ruminol's health bars appear under mine.

We continued chatting, swapping stories about recent jobs we'd taken and regretted, and Magdalene was in the middle of a recounting of an assassination job against a man that refused to leave a safe zone for seven hours straight when I noticed that the officers had stopped discussing things. "Ah," I said, raising a hand when she was breathing, and she paused to look at me. "As compelling as your story may be, I'm afraid I have business with Eugene. Please pardon me."

"Of course," Magdalene said with a courteous bow. "Go right ahead."

I stepped away from her - carefully not showing my back until I was a good distance away, because that was both a compliment to a professional and good old common sense telling me not to show my back to someone who would be more than willing to stab it if she had been paid enough - and approached Eugene. "Ah, Rythin," the bulky Salamander rumbled. "So you're joining us in this battle?"

"Sure thing," I told him, falling out of the more formal speech patterns I'd been using with ease. "By the way, gotta tell you that the..." I deliberately paused, pretending to think. Then I snapped. "That the 72nd Salamander Knight squad is doing a good job, that their leader isn't a gigantic tool, and that you should reward them for not being stupid enough to try to stop me."

"That arrogance will be your downfall, Rythin," he told me, nevertheless nodding as he accepted my compliment to the Salamander's training. "I'll kill you myself on the field of battle."

"Duels are more Kirito's thing, Gene, not mine," I told him - throwing the nickname in more to see him react than any real reason - and shrugged. "But yeah, I'm trying to restrain that a bit these days. Personal reasons, of course."

"Of course," he said smoothly, as though he hadn't been about to ask. Personal privacy was very important in this game, and anyone that thought otherwise was very quickly disabused of that notion. "Did you want to sit in on the tactical meeting? If you..." He trailed off because I was already shaking my head.

"For this fight," I said, "I'm just another fighter. One that might recognize the boss, but I'm going to be in the thick of things." He nodded, a gesture of recognition from one warrior to another. "Anyway, that was pretty much all. Your guys and the Undines know not to get in the way of me, Bloody Mary, or Fate, right?"

The only reaction I got out of him was a single raised eyebrow. His war face was basically a stone mask, which was pretty cool. "Do you think I'm an idiot, Rythin?"

"Nah, but better safe than getting stabbed by my own teammate." Waving jauntily, I slunk over to where the Undines were standing. "Hey, Army peoples, what's going on?"

Yulier and Thinker smiled at my casual greeting, though the other two Undines bristled slightly at my clear lack of respect. "Rythin," Thinker said, automatically extending a hand to shake, which I took. I wasn't technically bound by any of Trinity's rules, but I was still on the job - no reason not to be anything other than professional. "Good to see you. It's been, what, several months?"

I chuckled. "You're busy writing your column, I've got school, and I'm certain your lovely wife is busy as well, as I haven't seen her nearly enough."

Yulier laughed brightly. "Your professional attitude and silver tongue do you credit, Rythin. Not many people can be two people that separate." That's right, they knew me as I actually was. Or, at least, my unprofessional attitude.

I just smiled slightly. "Not many people have to be. But I've found that it's easier to be hired when my manners don't immediately turn off prospective clients." That being said, when I was in a foul mood I would drop the professional act so long as I wasn't currently under contract. There was only so much I could hide, and masking my disdain would be just as poisonous as admitting it right away. "But that's not important. How are you two enjoying the Aincrad floors so far?"

"Well, some places we try to avoid," Thinker admitted. "Like the City of Beginnings. The Monument of Swordsmen doesn't have that dungeon, but..." He shivered, and I understood.

"Still, though," Yulier said, "it's a fun place to play. And the Undine Lord has been very accommodating toward us."

"I've seen," I said dryly. "Not many players rise through the ranks of the races this quickly, not that I'd know anything about that as a filthy heathen merc." A leftover stigma from the tribal times of the game, I'm afraid, but one I, and all of Trinity, as well as the other impressive mercs like Magdalene and Ruminol were trying to change. "I'm looking forward to this fight."

"As are we," Thinker said.

I nodded politely and, with nothing better to do, drifted away before sitting against the nearest wall and pulling out my book. Din had already said he was going to be doing a project with Argo, so I couldn't even call my son to chat with him; of course, I enjoyed reading just as much as I enjoyed intelligent conversation, so the point was moot. Still, though, the book was a good way to pass the time, although I did end up shifting to a nearby plant root because it was more comfortable than the mossy floor. At one point, another name was added to the list of my party members; I looked at it, realized it was a name I didn't know - and thus unimportant in the grand scheme of things. Eugene was the commander for this, not me. I returned to my book, flipping through the pages as my eyes scanned over them. Reading was like battle, in a way, in the sense that it kept all of the threads in my mind busy.

When the loud chatter of fifty-odd assembled players was nearly impossible to ignore, I finally closed my book and stood, stretching and popping my knuckles absently, one at a time. Before long, Eugene called for order, and began speaking once there was silence amongst the players. "Those of you who were called here," he said, "thank you for attending. The several mercenaries that are also attending, we thank you for your presence as it could prove the difference between victory and defeat." He clenched a fist. "And I will not accept anything less than total annihilation of the boss!" Stirring speech, General, but do you have any info to back it up? "Several guilds have attempt to defeat this boss before, and all of them have failed before lowering the boss to its second health bar. Among the list of failures is Wolfsbane." My eyes widened briefly, and I gnawed at my lower lip; Wolfsbane was full of powerful fighters, even on par with Kirito and the rest of us, and if they'd failed… "The boss is a two-headed red centipede called The Crawlerpede, and -"

I couldn't help it; I doubled over, laughing helplessly. As Magdalene gazed at me reproachfully, I tried to stop - but the gales of laughter kept coming, and I fell to my knees, clutching at my stomach. "Is there something amusing about that?" Eugene snapped, glaring at me. He had a very good glare.

Eventually, I managed to control myself, and calmly picked myself up off of the ground and coughed once or twice. "I'm sorry," I said, a smile still twitching at my lips. "It's just..." I snickered. "If that's what I think it is... Red carapace, far too many legs, heads at both ends? Scythe-like arms that quickly degrade the durability of any weapon or armor that clashes against it?"

Eugene blinked. "...Yes, that's correct," he said. "Have you -"

"No," I said, shaking my head. "I haven't fought the bastard here." My eyes gleamed. "But back in SAO, he was a mini-boss on the 26th Floor." And he almost killed me. "He and I..." I let a bloodthirsty smile creep onto my face. "We have some unfinished business."

"Oh?" Magdalene said, smiling slightly. "I take it this boss nearly ended the tale of the Tactician?" There was a loud round of whispering at her question, and I glared.

"Yes," I hissed, sending another wave of murmurs through the crowd. "Because I faced it unprepared, ill-equipped, and with one other person. Knowing what I do now, and with my skills, I could -"

I was about to claim I could kill The Crawlerpede without anyone else's assistance when Yulier calmly cleared her throat. "This is off-topic," she said, and I felt the sudden power of the Army's second-in-command. My mouth clicked shut, and I shifted awkwardly. "Now, it would be more useful to discuss tactics. Eugene?"

Eugene nodded smoothly to her, before swiveling to glare at all of us. He began barking orders to the assembled players, giving orders for the fight. The Salamander and Undine mages would be deployed in the back with two parties of guards consisting of half tanks and half fighters; the other fighters would be trying to split The Crawlerpede's attention in half, much like Asuna and I did so long ago. As for the four non-aligned mercs, we'd just be doing whatever we felt like doing. For me, that was, naturally, trying my gods-damned best to murder the boss. We've got some time to catch up on, old... friend. Before long, the roles were divvied up, and we entered the dungeon chamber; my breath was feeling short, and I was forced to pant slightly as my lungs seemingly refused to accept enough oxygen. That didn't even make _sense_ I was in a virtual world and oxygen wasn't even _present_.

The boss room seemed to be a massive grassy clearing, small roots and clumps of moss dotting the battlefield. It didn't seem like it would be a footing hazard, so I put the ground out of mind. Now, the walls... They were what interested me. Several large dark holes dotted the wooden walls, and I couldn't peer through their depths. Still, with The Crawlerpede being the boss, I had a horrible premonition about what the holes were going to be used for. When the final of the torches - stylized to appear to be glowing baskets of bugs - lit, the door slammed shut behind us, locking us in. There would be no escape until one of the two feuding parties was dead. A skittering sound came from the hole on the far end of the chamber, just above the exit door, and I grinned madly. It just wouldn't be a fight against The Crawlerpede without the damn thing popping out of tunnels, now would it? The red menace appeared from the hole, its scythe-blades gleaming in the light from outside. It chittered, and its red eyes gleamed. It tilted its head unnaturally, and I could have sworn that its eyes zeroed on me and recognition dawned in those mindless depths. That's right, fucker. I'm back. _And I'm coming for you!_

"Raaaaaghhh!" It took me a second to realize that I was the one screaming a battle cry, and by that point I had already crossed the clearing and leapt into the air to kill it. "Die!" I hissed, already swinging with my Moonblade. Instantly, The Crawlerpede twitched disturbingly, and a single one of its scythes knocked my dagger away. I had expected that, and I used the power from its block to transform my initial swing into a vicious kick, slamming my knee into a segment of weak carapace. It cracked under the power of my blow, and The Crawlerpede chittered at me, several of its legs waving at me like it wanted to hug me as it ducked away into the hole; a second later, a set of eight fireballs flew past me - nearly singeing me in the process - and exploded inside the hole. There was no other reaction, so I just assumed we didn't hit it as it retreated. I landed from my kick and jumped back, landing back in the center of the clearing. "Coward," I hissed, glancing at my dagger; I had heard some acidic hissing, but it had a massive durability rating, so I had no worries about it breaking. Still, I flicked it to the side absently and got the worst of the poison off.

"Well," Ruminol said, spinning his scythe flashily as he stepped up next to me, catching it and posing. It certainly appeared threatening, though in my opinion the spinning was a bit too much to take him seriously. Then again, the sign of my Unique Skill - though it's not Unique anymore, Rythin - was ominously glowing red eyes, so I have no room to speak. "Seems you weren't lying when you said you had an issue with the beastie. Never thought you'd go crazy like that."

"I tend to go a bit overboard," I snarled. "Especially when my opponent is something that almost killed me once." I slowly turned, knife held in front of me, to stare at all of the holes. I wanted to be the one to kill it, but at the same time I knew Eugene was no fool. Almost everything in this floor had been weak to fire and water damage, and it was likely this boss was no different - if I ran in, trying to kill it manually, it was possible that the General would just command his troops to fire, regardless of the fact that I was in the line of fire. I'd get a hit in, but I'd also be set on fire or frozen solid, depending on what spell struck me, and that wasn't really that interesting to me. So I'll hang back, let them do their job, and then I can take the kill. I smiled grimly, finally glad to kill the bastard. Maybe I'll get another set of the Crawlerpede Carapace armor. That would be wonderful to display on the wall of our apartment.

Skittering filled the room, and someone called out that it was coming from the left; The Crawlerpede appeared from the shadows, and Eugene snapped a command. Instantly, the group of eight Salamander and Undine mages casted their spells, first fire then ice; the fireballs streaked toward the boss and exploded against its armor, making it shriek in pain, a second before the icicles slammed into it. The fire melted the ice, creating a cloud of steam, and Eugene charged in with a roar. His massive sword swung through the steam, blowing it away; The Crawlerpede tried to block it like it had my dagger, but his Demonic Sword Gram activated its special ability and phased through the scythe-arm, chopping through the weak joint beneath it and severing the limb. It fell to the ground, twitching grossly, and I had to hold back the urge to strike while The Crawlerpede was writhing in pain. Instead, I simply breathed out slowly and waited; sure enough, it wriggled back into the hole it came from. Damn insect.

The skittering sound echoed throughout the room, and I whirled when the volume swelled behind us. "The mages!" I snapped, whirling around and launching myself toward the closest hole. Beside me, Ruminol was cackling as he sailed through the air at the second hole - still next to the mages but slightly up and to the right. The skittering grew and I prepared to strike, hopefully managing to catch it and interrupt the attack before the retreating mages were hit; I swung when I was right in front of the hole, and a metallic clang rang out. Unfortunately, I wasn't the one that attacked; instead, it was Ruminol's scythe that had parried The Crawlerpede's attack, his spinning scythe just lightly flicking out as he avoided pressing the blade against the acidic monster.

"Get to the center!" Yulier called out, directing the group of Undine tanks and fighters to circle the mages, making our heavy artillery the gooey center of a delicious treat. It was a good thought, really, if only because the one place there weren't any holes for The Crawlerpede to strike from was directly above the center of the room, where the sunlight was streaming from. I landed from my attack and danced backwards smoothly, weaving through other fighters that were moving about into their new formations. "Mages, stay in the center! Guards, make sure The Crawlerpede doesn't get past you!"

"Careful!" I yelped, seeing The Crawlerpede pop out of nowhere. It opened its jaws wide and spat a blob of acid; the acid struck one of the players in the chest and started sizzling, burning through his armor rapidly. Less than ten seconds after he got struck by the blob of acid, the armor shattered. "Well, that's new."

Yulier frowned. "The acid is corrosive and will eat away your items. Don't get -"

"Above you!" Thinker shouted, his sword already swinging down. With a shriek of tortured metal, his blade slid against the scythe blade of The Crawlerpede, sending a spray of sparks raining down. A sizzling sound filled the air in tune with the bug's hissing, and I grimaced. The acid was doing its job far too quickly, and I'm just hoping everyone that didn't have a weapon with an absurd level of durability brought plenty of backups. That's what killed me in the end, after all, when my dagger broke in two and I didn't have anything to save me. Well, that and I was stunned by my weapon shattering and took one of the slashes straight to the chest. Still, it wasn't a huge loss - I watched with a small sigh as the extra merc jumped at The Crawlerpede, his large two-handed bastard sword trailing behind him. Instantly, The Crawlerpede struck out with its free scythe, and split the stupid Gnome from head to groin in a single slice. Pfeh. Idiot. It wasn't even that strong an attack, so he must have been very low-leveled. His brown flame flickered as some of the others gasped, amazed that he had been killed in one shot; I knew that The Crawlerpede had managed to almost kill me in pretty much the same way, so I wasn't surprised he'd been murdered. At least he wasn't being killed for real for his stupidity. I made a mental note to thank Asuna for saving me the next time I saw her and spun my dagger absently.

Wait. That was one scythe arm against Thinker, and then a second one against the stupid merc. That's two. And Eugene cut one of the arms off of The Crawlerpede. Either the damn thing regenerated every time it went back into the hole, which wouldn't make any sense, or... "The second head!" I snapped, already running toward it. I chanted a quick Fireball spell, and then snapped my fingers as I jumped; the golden Cait Sith icon appeared in front of me for an instant before a sizzling fire arrow streaked toward the centipede boss, followed swiftly by my knife. The explosion cloaked me for a second, and I burst through the smoke past the second scythe-arm to cut off a single leg on the right. It shrieked in pain, chittering angrily before withdrawing again. "We're on the second bar!" I called out as I landed on the ground, stumbling slightly. The severed leg landed next to me, and I gave it a look of disgust as it twitched. I hate things with more than four legs.

"Mage squads, split your focus!" Eugene snapped. Instantly, the Salamander and undine mages split in half, four of each facing each half of the room. I raised an eyebrow, surprised that they had managed to pull that off with just a simple command - then again, it was Eugene. He'd probably drilled them on it before.

I heard a new voice chanting, a long drawn out aria, and I glanced over to see Flamel chanting, his hands held out in front of him. The Words of Powers were spinning around him, and I blinked at the layers. He had to have at least three layers around him, and I think he was working on a fourth. His voice started rising in volume, and I heard Eugene call for the fighters to avoid attacking the boss when it appeared. Suddenly, the chanting rose to a shout, and I watched everyone with a shield raise it over their heads. Confused, I watched Flamel; he clapped his hands together, and a huge ball of light seemed to rise above him. I felt someone yank me back, and I yelped as I was hauled off balance, my feet off of the ground as I was hauled into the air. I looked up to see Eugene holding me by the collar of my coat, and blinked. "Pretty sure you're not supposed to pick cats up by the scruff of their neck," I pointed out. "Least, not full-grown ones."

"I'm saving your life," he grunted in reply.

As I opened my mouth to reply there was a loud burst and the world turned to hellfire. The orb that had risen over my head burst apart, a wave of pure fire rippling over the room, the temperature spiking; as the ripple of superheated air reached the end of the room, it snapped back to the center, compressing before a wide spread of fireballs shot into the air. They showered down, turning the entire field of grass into a blaze as The Crawlerpede, both heads out, writhed in pain. With an audible snap, the entire blaze just froze solid in a single wave from Flamel; the fire was flash-frozen, the ice containing the dark red embers. With another wave, the smooth slopes of the ice shattered, melting into the air as the shards scattered. The water glittered as it struck the ground, and I stared in amazement at Flamel as he calmly adjusted that single red wing that hung from his coat. Holy shit. I'd thought he was just fire and resurrection, not... not whatever the hells that was. That was fucking Armageddon-class magic if that magic was anything to show for it.

As I gaped at the carnage that Flamel had wrought, Eugene dropped me, and I landed on my feet easily. "See?" he said, a single eyebrow raised.

"I'll remember to thank you after we kill this bastard." Eugene just raised the other eyebrow at my dry response - his equivalent of a chuckle - and nodded. "How much did that spell over there do, anyway?"

"It should have done easily the second health bar," Flamel said, moving over to join us. "However, I'm tapped of mana for all but my automatic revival spells, so until that can recover I'll be empty." Hm. So Flamel can possibly cast something like that again if he chugs enough potions? Hopefully that will happen before the boss dies, because chewing through pretty much a full health bar? Really convenient, strangely enough.

Both heads of the boss appeared, smoking slightly, and spat globs of acid; the targets managed to dodge, and the acid dissipated harmlessly on the ground. Seems like it doesn't affect organic - well, game-organic - material, just metal and stuff like that. So it won't kill us, just make it easier for the boss to kill us. Seems like it does it once a health bar. "So, wait," I said slowly, glancing at the holes nervously. When we dropped it down a bar, The Crawlerpede had spat acid and then revealed its second head. But... it was The Crawlerpede. It only _had_ two heads. "It's The Crawlerpede, so there shouldn't be any more -"

"Head!" someone shouted, pointing at the wall. Immediately I whipped around, staring - and then I immediately swore. The Crawlerpede that had appeared wasn't missing a scythe or a leg, and so yep, that was a third head. "Get it!" Immediately, the free Salamanders and Undine fighters struck at it, dogpiling the vulnerable bit of the boss that they could see. I let them do that; and while they were trying to kill it, I listened carefully for the tell-tale sound of skittering coming from other holes. I tapped Ruminol on the shoulder, waving a hand around, and he nodded; after a second, we split up and lunged. He went north and I went south; the third head was on the east and so we'd shifted to the most likely places. I waited patiently, hoping that something would happen soon; a blur of red caught my eye, and I jumped back an instant before a scythe-arm stabbed where I had been, sinking into the earth. Immediately, I landed, ears flat, and jumped at The Crawlerpede, my blade cutting into its carapace and cracking it slightly. With a hiss of rage, I dug my Dragontalons deep into its flesh, ignoring the way it was thrashing around, and pulled with all of my might. The carapace shattered and I lost my balance, falling down. I landed on my hands and used a handspring to jump away, but The Crawlerpede had already crawled away. Damn insects.

"There's more than two!" Thinker yelped as I landed next to him, my tail lashing. "I thought you said -"

"I also said I fought it on the 26th Floor! And I didn't kill it, that was the Knights of the Blood!" This is entirely new to me! I have no information on this! Shit!

And new health bars meant new attack patterns. Suddenly, The Crawlerpede lunged out from two holes simultaneously, one head missing a chunk of shell and its leg and the other one badly damaged with red lines crisscrossing its body; their arms reached out and grabbed one of the Undine Tanks, dragging him slowly toward the edge. Some of the fighters tried to free him, but they were too late, their maces slamming into the wall and sending shards of bark flying into the air - as soon as the twin heads of the boss had reached the wall, they had sliced the player in half, completely ignoring his armor and severing him. And I knew this guy wasn't low level, since he was part of the official raid party; that meant the attack had to be an instant kill. Great. Just fantastic. Exactly what we needed.

"Shift formation!" Eugene roared. "Phalanx!" I blinked, trying to guess what exactly the Roman iron tortoise had anything to do with this, and then I realized that it was probably a formation sign. Sure enough, the mages' guards stepped forward until they were almost at the walls, slamming their heavy shields into the ground with gaps between them; the other fighters filled those gaps, their swords and lances poking out between the tower shields. It was actually clever; the fighters could still attack The Crawlerpede when it poked its head out, but if it tried grabbing another player they could be rescued before being torn in two.

"So, how long did you guys spend drilling this?" I asked Eugene and Yulier as the mages chanted in unison, sending another flurry of icicles and fireballs at the boss's head. It had been a feint, however, and they exploded harmlessly a second after the boss ducked back into its hole.

Yulier smiled slightly. "Several hours, actually. We've been planning this for -"

I noticed one of the heads was near me, the one missing a piece of its shell. "Hold that thought!" With a powerful lunge, I pounced on it, stabbing into its soft flesh with my claws. "Guess what?" I hissed. "Not so weak now, am I?" It shuddered and tried to retreat, and I tore free with a flourish, nearly bisecting the creature as I jumped free. "C'mon, you tried so hard to kill me last time, and now I'm kicking your carapace! Hit me! Fight me!" WHERE'S THAT HUG?! I heard a strange repetitive sound, and after players started giving me a strange look I realized I was laughing.

A skittering sound filled the air, and all three heads of The Crawlerpede poked out of holes. "Acid!" Thinker shouted. There was a panicked scrambling as the tanks that were in front of a head pulled their shields back, if only to avoid shattering the shell. Because they were so close together, though, they couldn't avoid the acid itself, and when the sizzling had ended three more players had lost their armor. I shivered, glad that my own equipment hadn't gotten damaged - it was all irreplaceable. And Liz would crucify me if I let my stuff get destroyed, that too.

I blinked and looked around, blanching when I realized that the three heads hadn't slipped back into their holes. And that there was more skittering coming from the other holes... I hissed in a breath as heads appeared from every hole, their hundreds of legs twitching and shifting. "Oh, _fuck_ me," I whispered. The damn thing was a hydra. That was at least twenty heads, if not more. I heard a loud ringing start coming from all around me, but I couldn't stop to see where it was coming from. "Kill it kill it kill it with fire!" I yelped, my dagger already flashing toward one of the nearest heads. I dropped back into the stance for my Original Sword Skill, and relaxed into the blows; as I attacked, I saw Eugene doing the same to my right, using his own skill. I think he called it Volcanic Blazer, or something like that - it was the strongest one in the game, with eight hits. Mine was only seven, though I had some ideas on how to make it stronger. My fighting style could combo passably well, though it wasn't as good as Kirito or Asuna could probably pull off given enough time. "Die die die!" That ringing was so _loud!_

At some point between when the heads appeared and when my rage-terror-whatever-fueled blood frenzy faded, The Crawlerpede died. I only realized that because when I swung around drunkenly, there were no more red creepy-crawly things to attack and murder. I vaguely remember seeing Magdalene drop from the ceiling where she'd been invisible the entire time and then stabbing one of the heads - was that the kill shot? "Well fought, Rythin," Magdalene said, coming over to me as I sheathed my Moonblade uneasily.

"Thanks," I said with a sigh, glancing at her. "You as well. I... Fuck this, I'm out," I muttered, walking to the exit without even hesitating. Screw it. Someone else can deal with this shit. The Crawlerpede is dead, I killed it, that's one more enemy from my past that can die in a fire. I just want to get to the next floor, then teleport to Yggdrasil City and sleep for a year. And then for the next week... No matter what happened, next week was a week I was going to spend away from anything involving Alfheim. I was going to enjoy myself by reading book or spending time with Argo or watching TV, and there was nothing that could -

* * *

 **January 3** **rd** **, 2026**

"Dad? There's something on the forums you should see. Some person issued a blanket challenge for a fight on the 24th Floor a while back. They're saying they want a strong player to fight them. Well, something big just happened."

"...Mother of _shit_."

* * *

 **I figure that sooner or later they'd reuse bosses from the original game, so I feel no shame in making Rythin fight against the Crawlerpede again. Fuck that thing, by the way. A fun little game I was playing while writing this was figuring out how many times I could plausibly interrupt Yulier to keep her from finishing a sentence; I've got nothing against her, it just so happened that while writing the first draft I kept interrupting her and when I wrote the second draft I started doing it on purpose.**

 **Armageddon-class magic, as Rythin termed it, is a (made-up, unfortunately) reward for players that have mastered multiple classes of magic. Essentially, it drains about 90%-95% of the caster's magic and casts a massively overpowered spell that combines the similar effects of both schools. It's been theorized that there could literally be a spell called 'Ragnarok' if someone mastered all the spells schools, but nobody's anywhere even close to that (even the most dedicated mages have only mastered two so far). For those wondering how many people actually can cast that type of magic, it's restricted to those that have mastered two schools or more of magic, one of which is the racial school, so a lot fewer than you'd think. At the moment, there's very few; the Phoenix is one of the only ones. The spell he used was the Fire/Ice spell, Ice Dragon's Flare. Other ones we might see are the Beast Taming/Music spell, Pied Piper (100% chance to tame any tameable monster) and the Beast Taming/Wind spell, Bestial Existence (grants the user the form of a** _ **very**_ **powerful monster, usually something along the lines of Kraken or Leviathan or Nidhoggr, something like that).**

 **Many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.**


	18. Absolute Sword

**Chapter 18: Absolute Sword**

* * *

 **January 3** **rd** **, 2026**

I was just enjoying myself, relaxed and calm. My room was nice and warm, and I had my music playing in the background while I was reading a good book. My cat was curled up by my leg and I was supremely comfortable. It had been only four days since Kana and I had gone on that double date with Kazuto and Keiko, but I had somehow managed to avoid leaving the house or doing anything more strenuous than making my lunch and dinner each day. It was absolute bliss. The only thing that could make it better would be Kana by my side, reading her own book or writing in her notebook. Though it wasn't perfect without her, my little bubble of isolation was -

My phone dinged. "Dad? There's something on the forums you should see. A week ago a new player issued a blanket challenge to anyone, and something big just happened."

I took a deep breath, then counted to three. And then exhaled slowly. "...Mother of _shit_ ," I growled finally. Really? Fucking really? I was just barely over halfway through my week off, and _now_ this shit happens? It couldn't happen when I was bored and looking for something to do, no, of course not. That would be convenient and the universe couldn't have that, now could it? "Gotta get Kana on the phone," I muttered, closing my book and putting it on my desk. I'd finish it tonight. Definitely. That was a thing that was going to happen. ...Who the hell am I kidding? I'd get distracted on my computer and wind up staying up until the wee hours of the morning. Like I always did. But in my defense those funny cat videos wouldn't watch themselves, now would they? My computer was already up and running since the moment I woke up - an old habit that I wouldn't think of breaking - and so I just had to wait the few seconds for my screen to come out of sleep mode before my fingers were flying over the keyboard, moving towards the forums for Alfheim. In my second monitor - actually a TV that I've repurposed towards watching shows online rather than actual TV - I loaded up my video chat software and took a brief second to make sure my camera and mic were working. After the tech check, I gave Kana a call, and it rang a few times before connecting. "Hey, Kana."

"'lo, Nick," Kana mumbled, her eyes not on my image. She was scanning something on her monitor, and I figured she was reading the same thing I had just spotted. "Din tell you too?"

I blinked before heading over to the video chat and 'calling' Din as well; since his cameras that let him see us were mostly the same software as what my own camera used, it had been simple to just create a little point for the chatting software to hook into. It was mostly ad-hoc and didn't work perfectly, but then again it was video chatting, it never worked perfectly at the best of times. "So what do we have?" I asked him once he connected, my eyes already scanning the very short forums post. "'Seeking formidable challengers... strong players, confidence... reward...' Seems straightforward enough. What's so special about a week-old challenge?"

"The big thing is," Kana said, her eyes still scanning. Probably reading the rest of the thread. "Kazuto tried it out and lost."

My eyes widened. " _What_?" Both of them winced at my sudden volume, and I grimaced apologetically. I glanced over at my bed to see my cat staring at me balefully. Sorry, kitten. "Shit. If Kazuto lost... Was he fighting at full power?"

Din shook his head. "Not according to my interpretation of the threads, Dad. Most of the posters are saying they're shocked that he lost, but none of them mentioned anything about his two-sword style or Excalibur. While this is mostly conjecture, it's likely he just fought with his regular sword."

I sighed, breath hissing out through my teeth. "Right, then. Not as terrible as I thought it would be, then. Having someone beat The Dual Blades Swordsman when he was going all-out would have tanked Trinity's rep."

"Cold-blooded, Nick," Kana scolded me gently. "Be nice."

"Speaking as the leader of Trinity, I'm glad one of our members didn't lose too badly." My eyes hardened. "Speaking as Nick, Kazuto's friend, I'm fucking _pissed_." I bared my teeth. "Someone beat my friend in a fight? That can't stand."

"Down, Nick," Kana said softly. "Relax, he's okay." I took a deep breath and throttled the anger. "From what he said to me, he's taking the loss in stride. I'll have to ask him about how it all went down later, of course, but from what the forums said he just straight-up lost."

I growled deep in my throat. "Damn it..."

"Why don't you fight this Zekken?" she suggested suddenly, and I blinked.

"What."

"No, no, it's a good idea!" she said, a grin splitting her face. "C'mon, Nick, I know you want to. Zekken's a strong fighter and you've been looking for a challenge. Besides, if you beat her, you get a pretty neat prize."

I raised an eyebrow. "A prize like what?" Greed, meet wrath. Wrath, meet greed. I'm sure you two sins will get along _juuust_ fine.

"This is where things get interesting," Kana purred. "I think it'd be best if I start from the top. This is just what I've found out through my contacts so far, anyway." Wait, how long has she known? Wait, stupid question, she's known the whole time. Probably wrote it off as not important or something until Kazuto got his ass handed to him. I mean, there's only so much she can tell me, and I trust her judgment.

"...the prize?" I tried not to whine, but I'm not sure I succeeded.

By the small quirk of her lips, I didn't. "Patience, Nick. Good things come to those who wait." She smirked slightly, and I wasn't sure what the joke was. "Anyway, Zekken... First off, it's not the real handle of the player. Her actual name is Yuuki." Wait, Kazuto got his ass handed to him by a girl? Then again, I probably shouldn't judge, given that the tank in our group is a female. "The player themselves is new to the game, supposedly, but I'm willing to bet they've converted from another game since their skill level is supposedly through the roof."

"You keep adding conditionals, Mom," Din added. "Haven't you seen Zekken fight for yourself?"

Kana shook her head. "Nh-nn. I've been busy with classwork and stuff - that you should be doing too, Nick. I know you're not done." I just rolled my eyes. I'd finish it tomorrow or day after, relax. "Sure. Right. To answer your question, Din, I'm adding conditionals because this is all second-hand information. Things that other people are telling me. I haven't been able to find Yuuki outside of the time she's set up for her duel." Kana sighed and ran her hand through her hair, absently playing with the ends of her hair. I can tell she's a little irritated about her lack of good intel. "So a week ago or so, Yuuki posted this 'strong opponent wanted' notice on the boards, the thread you're looking at right now. Every day at 3:00 in the afternoon, she'd show up at a location then wait around for an hour, taking any challenger one-on-one. It used to be on the 23rd Floor, but now it's an island just off of the 24th."

"I'm sure that went well with the forums posters," I drawled. Goddamn divas, the lot of them. Half the reason I posted was to see what new drama people would come up with next. It was almost comical, watching them whine and bicker about Trinity. The explosion when I revealed Sinon had joined us, as well as posted a few videos about her exploits in GGO and in Alfheim had been nothing less than spectacular.

"About as well as you'd expect," she sighed. "Naturally everyone wanted to teach the cocky new player a lesson, so on the first day about thirty players showed up, ready to beat Yuuki to a pulp." She grimaced. "Didn't exactly go so well."

"Every single one of them lost?" I asked, a little incredulously. Most people were fairly high-level if they were bragging on the boards, though there were some that were more stupid than skilled. Those guys usually didn't last too long, though. Still, for every one of the players to lose…

"Wiped out to a man," Kana confirmed. "And to make things worse, none of them even managed to knock her below seventy percent." Well, then. That's actually fairly impressive. Maybe I should take this a little more seriously. "According to everyone that saw her, she was magnificent at fighting both on the ground and the air. Even for someone converting over, being able to pick up the ability to fly while fighting that quickly is almost unheard of." I picked it up almost immediately, but that was through desperation more than anything. If I _didn't_ , Asuna would have been in danger.

I folded my arms, leaning back and staring at the ceiling. "So why hasn't Yuuki stopped getting challengers yet? There can't be that many people left willing to lose to her."

Kana smirked. "See, that's where the prize comes in. The reward for beating Yuuki is something absolutely worth the risk - an Original Sword Skill." I raised an eyebrow, curious why she hadn't mentioned it to me earlier if it was so valuable. Original Sword Skills could only be passed down to one other person, so people that made them were notoriously tight-fisted about sharing them. "Unfortunately for us, the skill is for one-handed sword, not dagger. Boo, hiss, dagger master race." I grinned slightly. "The reason everyone wants one, though, is because this combo is eleven hits long. She demonstrated it the first day, and apparently it stunned everyone present."

My eyes widened. "That... that's a lot of hits," I mumbled through my shock.

Din looked at me. "Dad, your combo is only seven, right?"

"Yeah," I nodded. "My fighting style is good with combos since I can use Martial Arts to chain the dagger techniques together. Still, Genie managed to get eight hits with that bastard bastard sword of his, so I guess eleven isn't unthinkable." I hissed out a breath quietly. "But anything more than five is almost impossible to pull off without so many hours of practice. She has to be good, then, if she's got her technique down that well."

"I still haven't made an OSS," Kana said. "What's it like, making one?"

I closed my eyes, trying to summon up the feeling of slicing through the air in a series of patterns. "It felt... powerful," I said finally. "You know how you have to move at the same speed as the system to get it to register? To reach those speeds, you have to _know_ what your next move will be instinctively. The player can't hesitate in the slightest. Your bones, your instincts have to flow from the first attack to the next without a hint of fear or worry." I opened my eyes to realize I was smiling a wry smile. "To make powerful moves, you have to basically turn off the mind and just fight on instinct. At least, that's how I made mine."

"Wow," Din murmured. I felt a moment's stirring of pride that my son was impressed by me. "...You're a nutcase," he said finally. My son, ladies and gentlemen.

"But you both love me anyway." I looked at Kana. "So, beautiful, anything else you can tell me about Yuuki before I go have some fun this afternoon?"

"One-handed sword, same as Kazuto though obviously lighter. Race is an Imp, but nobody's seen her use magic," Kana said promptly, and I made a mental - and physical - note to pay her for the information when we were both in the game. "So you're going to fight her?"

I grinned, and I knew by the way both of them shifted it wasn't a particularly happy smile. "I've been waiting for something like this to come around." It had been just me wasting time, really. I enjoyed reading and all, but lately it felt like I was just... waiting for something to happen. Like, each day was just one day closer to the big event - only I didn't know what the big event _was_ , or when it would come. The end of school, maybe? I don't know. "It's been a while since I've had a good PvP match. Death Gun doesn't really count, since Kazuto was the one to handle him. Someone that can surpass Kazuto, hm? This I have to see..." It was just after noon, so I had a couple hours to kill. Might as well log into the game just to get a warm-up going. I doubt there's gonna be anything interesting to fight, but maybe I should run through a dungeon really quick and solo a boss, just to get my blood boiling. It wouldn't do to embarrass myself because I wasn't quite ready to fight yet.

When I opened my eyes, I was lying on the bed where I had logged out just before New Years. Sighing, I sat up and stretched, yawning widely as I did my best to crack my back or invert my spine, whichever occurred first. When I heard a loud pop, I straightened and grinned at the relief. It didn't actually change how I played, but the game was controlled by the mind, and if my mind functioned smoother after pretending to crack my back, then I cracked my back. I waited a few seconds to see if Din was going to join me, but when the now-familiar weight of the little nav pixie landing lightly on my shoulder didn't hit me in a slow ten count I shrugged and made my way out of our tiny little apartment. Probably still working with Argo in the real world. It felt a little weird at first without that extra weight shifting my center of gravity to whatever side, but I adjusted soon enough, my slightly rolling gait becoming firmer as I broke into a run before leaping off of the balcony and spreading my golden wings. Flight just felt so free at times; I could just fly into the sky without a care in the world, leaving the land-bound insects down below me. I hovered high in the sky, far out of reach of anyone below me as I opened my menu, searching for a weak dungeon nearby; I just needed something quick to murder in order to kick my blood into high gear, so it wasn't a huge deal if it wasn't actually a challenge.

Time to go take a… very _enthusiastic_ walk.

* * *

I laughed gleefully as the last monster fell, split in half by my Moonblade. All that was left was the boss itself, and it was rearing back on hind legs. I turned my blazing eyes towards the boss and giggled drunkenly as I lunged toward it, my blade in my hand and my Dragontalons ready to rake across its face. I didn't even register what it really looked like, just seeing it as a collection of bits to carve and cut up. As I danced through its attacks, I deliberately didn't dodge some of the blows it tried to rain on me despite Future Step giving me enough warning to do so; I wanted to _feel_ the world around me, feel it try to fight back and _fail_. I was the alpha predator, and no matter what it tried this game could not throw anything that would defeat me. Not while I was alive, not while my family was alive and with me.

As the boss fell in front of me, I didn't bother checking my rewards - that wasn't why I fought it. My blood was raging, my heart pounding as I stalked forward toward the exit of the dungeon, and I felt my face twist into a snarling grin. I deliberately let myself growl deep in my throat as I pulled out a warp crystal and snarled, "Teleport, Panareze." The light enveloped me and I shuddered before exhaling slowly, forcing myself to crystallize the feelings of bloodlust and rage by locking them away deep in my mind. They crystallized with the image of my Moonblade, and I could shatter that crystal at any time and feel that same rage and hatred flow through me. It was a useful technique I'd developed back when I had needed to repress my emotions, but that time was long past. Now I had everyone by my side, and I'd never feel alone again. I was empty right now, hollow and cold except from the tightly-controlled insanity, but that would pass. It always did, with time. Like bailing a boat with a slow leak, I would begin to fill with emotions again soon.

As soon as I was on the 24th Floor I kicked off into the sky, flying toward the island at an easy speed - not too fast, but not slow either. Mainly to bask in the sun, really, since the sun felt so nice and warm. Kinda like turning up the heater in the winter and then just sprawling out on my bed, just making me want to be lazy and sit around and... No! I can't relax yet, not until I've fought! Gritting my teeth and lightly tapping on the mental crystal of rage and bloodlust, I deliberately bared my fangs and bit down on a chunk of my right forearm, wincing slightly at the sharp sting they managed to provoke. It wasn't actually painful like it was in real life, but that plus the feedback from the crystal was still enough to trick my brain into thinking I was under attack and kick into high gear. Yes... That was the way things should be. I am a weapon, designed and forged into a keen edge. I would cut whatever my wielder aimed me towards - and Argo had pointed me towards Yuuki. So I must fight her, and I must destroy her. I had to win, for Argo's sake. She'd told me to fight, and so she must expect me to win. If I lost, I'd be a failure.

I arrived at the island and settled down among the crowd that had already gathered. It wasn't really all that many people - about fifteen, twenty at the most - but it was enough that there would be at least one or two hopeful challengers in addition to me. That would give me time enough to study Yuuki's form and develop counters to it. It wouldn't be perfect, since I would only have the one chance to fight her and she could surprise me, but it was better than coming into the fight unprepared like a lamb to the slaughter. Being ill-prepared had been deadly in Aincrad and it would be deadly here. I needed to approach this like I would any other bossfight - send in the pawns first, watch how they fare, and then dictate my strategy from that point forward. Through further refining, I'd find the ideal strategy and stab my dagger home. My lips curled as I envisioned my victory. My victory was certain and all I had to do was find the pieces of its picture in my fight with her.

A figure appeared in the distance and I snapped my gaze over to the Imp quickly approaching from the south. Smooth flying, skilled in the air. Argo said she was a quick learner, but seeing her fly that well after just a week? That was more than just a quick learner. That was a prodigy. We'll see if her grace in flying translated to grace on the ground, shall we? As the Imp flew closer, close enough for me to verify that yes, it was an Imp, I started taking in the details. Slender, fairly small... Taller than Silica but shorter than Asuna, so probably going to be a blend of their styles. With a one-handed sword she's either cutting or stabbing, and I don't see a shield so treat her like I would Kirito. I bared my teeth slightly as the slim Imp landed with a light tap - control was impressive, no massive backblast from the landing despite her quick approach. Amidst muted cheers, the Imp looked around and grinned widely. "Any challengers today?" Yuuki asked excitedly.

I didn't move a muscle as I waited patiently. Nobody said or did anything, so Yuuki just casually flew up into the trees and perched on one of the lower branches, her legs swinging idly. She seems young, looks young, though appearances mean nothing anymore. Long purple hair held back by a hairband... Thin, long sword on her left hip... Purple skirt split down the middle with a red design on the left. Everything I'm seeing is mobility-based, so assume she's a speed fighter. Blend of Kirito and Asuna, maybe? She seemed confident in her abilities, though if she's survived a week of fighting challengers without a single loss that confidence is likely justified. Hesitantly, a man emerged from the waiting crowd to the cheers of a few of his friends; I gave him a quick once-over, then rolled my eyes. Weaker, dressed in heavy armor that was weighing him down, uses a two-handed broadsword. He was just there for the possible notoriety of defeating Zekken, defeating the Absolute Sword in single combat. Yuuki's face immediately split into a grin and she hovered down to land in front of him, beaming widely. "I'll take you up on your challenge," the man declared.

"Cool!" Yuuki chirped. "So I guess the regular rules. You can use magic, or items, or anything you want. ...I'm just gonna be sticking with my sword, though." No magic, focus mainly on swords and fighting power. She did transfer from another game, looks like. "Oh, right! You wanna go on the ground or in the air?" Either is okay? She's got good skills in both, it seems, so I won't hamstring myself and I'll stick to the ground.

The man didn't hesitate. "On the ground."

"Right, then. Jumping is cool, but no using wings. OK?" The man nodded, and Yuuki tapped her menu with practiced motions; it was only a second later that the duel screen appeared in front of him. The man glanced over at his shoulder at his buddies, taking a deep breath; he accepted the duel and drew his massive sword as the two backed away from each other. Rather than looking at the challenger, I focused on Yuuki as she shifted her weight from side to side. She seemed excited, like this was something she'd been searching for, and now she might have found it.

She hadn't.

The duel was pathetic, really; the man was too slow to keep up with Yuuki in any way, letting the girl dance around his slow heavy strikes with ease. It really was like watching Kirito fight, only if Kirito was female and used lighter swords. Yuuki's strikes were almost dainty as she struck out and stabbed before withdrawing. The man just couldn't keep up with the speed of the slender Imp, and despite his best attempts he was killed handily. When his flame was finally flickering behind him, Yuuki sheathed her sword on her hip and turned to give us the sign of victory. "Okay, who's next?"

The second contestant got his ass handed to him just as easily; the man was a mage, but he had a curved dagger on his hip. I watched with interest as they both took to the sky, the man chanting almost constantly. When he fired his spell, Yuuki didn't even flinch as she shifted to the side to avoid the wind blades before stabbing him through the chest. No fear when it comes to dodging spells, so she's played these games for far too long. My eyes narrowed, and I wondered if she'd recognize me. If she did, she was either very good about looking up the big players, or she was from Aincrad. Either way, I couldn't let her win.

When she flashed her now-expected megawatt smile and V for victory and asked for any more challengers, I stepped forward grimly. My eyes were hard and locked on her. "I'll take you up on the challenge," I said, staring at her. "Ground combat."

"Okay!" she chirped, grinning at me. I felt my anger start to rise. She thinks she can just walk in here and just smile and people will accept her presence? No. I had to bite and claw my way through seventy-five floors of bosses for this power. Who the hell was she to look down on me like that? Who the _hell_ did she think she was going to face? I deliberately let my control of my madness slack and felt the anger flow through me. I wanted to punch her, wanted to feel her die under my blade. She would _not_ be allowed to emerge victorious. From the sky another Cait Sith landed, and I turned to see Argo standing there, Din riding her shoulder. They grinned and waved, and I grinned in response. The duel prompt appeared in front of me, and I accepted without hesitation; the timer ticked down, and I shifted my stance slightly to cover my fleshy bits better and prepared for the instant I could attack.

As soon as the timer rang I shattered the mental crystal holding back my rage and bloodlust and my blood _sang_ as I pushed off of the ground, covering the distance between me and Yuuki in a heartbeat. I had a split second to see her face twist in surprise before my fist was blurring toward her stomach. A good sucker punch would -

My Dragontalons let out a screech as they crashed against her sword, and my eyes widened. She'd somehow managed to shift her sword just enough to block the blow. How? She'd expected the attack? That couldn't be possible. She'd never seen me fight before. I carried through the blow, testing out her strength, and instead of fighting me she disengaged, shifting back slightly. Slower than Asuna, faster than Kirito. I couldn't test her strength yet, so I needed to lure her into attacking. She said I could use magic, so might as well. If I get the spell off, that's even better. I need a quick spell, so maybe just... "Ek fleygja þrír geirr muspilli!" I chanted quickly, snapping once the reticle in my eye was centered on Yuuki. The three searing pillars of flame streaked toward her and she dodged easily, closing in on me with a shout. I just blocked her strike with my right arm and glared at her with rage and bloodlust searing through my body. She must have seen something in my eyes because she jumped away just before my Moonblade sliced through the air where her ribs had been; I'd missed with the poison, but I had the measure of her strength. Now that I knew how she'd move, I was fine - she was middle ground between Asuna and Kirito, not as fast as my sister but not as strong as my brother. _Easy prey..._ I exhaled slowly, baring my teeth, and then lunged forward, my left fist blurring toward her face. The instant her sword shifted to block the punch, I snarled in victory; my fist stopped and I shifted, my other fist shooting out in a very damaging punch that would slam into her stomach. The first time seeing this particular Martial Arts Sword Skill, even Kirito couldn't react fast enough to -

 _Clang._

What. _What?!_ My face twisted as I bared my teeth with a silent snarl. How did she block the attack? She'd have had to have... faster reflexes than Kirito. But that was impossible! She moves too quickly, too smoothly in the game. It's like she lives here - and that was only possible for people that had been in Aincrad! Her reflexes were faster than Kirito's if she was able to react to the trick punch in time even after falling for the feint, but she was in Aincrad? Something isn't fitting right, what's not right?! "Who the hell are you?" I growled, deliberately keeping pressure on the deadlock. "You've spent too much time in this virtual world. You live here, don't you?" Something complicated flashed in her eyes, and Yuuki sighed.

"Darn it. Why'd ya have to go and say it out loud?" Say what out loud? Nobody could hear what I was saying, they were too far away. With an apologetic grin, Yuuki tried to disengage, but I fell forward into a handstand and spun, trying to slam my heels into her side. I was rewarded with a series of cuts along my leg for my trouble, though I powered through the pain and struck her in the shoulder. As I righted myself, Yuuki was already dashing toward me, her sword glowing. "Now you won't work!"

"What are you babbling about?" I snarled, refusing the urge to use Future Step just yet. I needed it as a surprise to open her guard once I had her in a position where it would be most effective. "What are you searching for?"

Yuuki just gave me an impish grin and leaned into her blow. The strength behind her attack forced me to brace myself, and the sudden weight of my body in the sand blew up a cloud of dust. "Sorry," she said. "Can't tell you!" She materialized in front of me. "It's a secret," she whispered playfully.

In response, I triggered Future Step and was rewarded admirably when she flinched away, shocked at the sight of my eyes. "Like I give a damn about secrets," I hissed. "My only interest is understanding what the hell is going on. Your existence does not make sense!"

Yuuki's face went bone-white, then flushed; her previously cheerful grin twisted in anger. "Shut the hell up!" she snapped, shifting her sword. I don't even know what pissed her off. The path of the blows were clear to me, and I shifted past them easily, giving them a generous berth all the same. I knew it was possible to dodge them closer, but Yuuki could still shift the paths of her Sword Skills enough that if I wasn't careful, I could get hit. She fought gracefully, her sword a living part of her as she spun and twirled; I responded in kind, my gauntlets attacking and slicing out, trying to catch her, but every time the little imp slipped from my grasp at the last second, reacting just quickly enough. Yuuki's face was set in anger, and I didn't care; my own rage was pushing at me, trying to get me to release it through my body, to abandon control. But control was what I needed right now, what had lasted me throughout the fights in Aincrad, so I couldn't let the madness get to me.

I was starting to get tired, my body swaying back and forth; I knew that if I kept up like this I'd run out of energy before Yuuki, so I shifted to a more relaxed style of fighting. Lurching from side to side, I closed in with erratic movements that let me dodge one of her thrusts and counter with a sweeping kick toward her stomach. It wasn't particularly fast or brutal – merely midlevel on both aspects – but when it collided with her guard she was sent skidding backwards from the force. I grinned; the power had come from using the motions of my body, my leg almost acting like a whip. Laughing madly, I lunged forward and swayed to the side, barely managing to avoid her attack as she shot toward me, her sword stabbing out. With a gleeful cackle, I twisted and punched in a flowing motion, slamming my fist into her back. A metal clang told me I only hit her armor, and we both staggered a few steps; me because I was off-balance from the punch and her because, well, I punched her pretty damn hard.

Yuuki and I straightened up, our armor rustling slightly, and stared at each other. Her sword glowed with a pale green light, and Future Step showed me it was going to strike five times, a spread centered in my chest; I turned to the side and raised my arm, slipping past two of the stabs and blocking another two, though one managed to slip past my guard and stab into my side. I hissed in anger and spun into a roundhouse kick that Yuuki ducked under - but I had expected that, and my planted foot pivoted as I continued the spin for another kick that caught her in the side as she was rising, knocking her to the side. She caught herself, skidding in the dust and transforming that momentum into a backwards flip that took her out of range of my follow-up slam. My fist hit the ground and sent up a plume of dust that was disturbed when a scythe of red light burst through followed by Yuuki herself, the girl halfway through an attack that would cut down my chest if it connected. Desperately, I threw myself backwards and pushed off the ground with my free hand to dodge her smooth connecting move. Yuuki moved forward, slicing out, and I gracefully slipped to the side; my dagger sought the weak point in her armor, the part where it connected the skirt to her upper armor, and Yuuki immediately parried with a smooth cartwheel that had her sword blade flashing toward my eyes. I jerked away and turned my flinch into a rising kick aimed toward her gut, but when she dodged easily I kept going into a backwards cartwheel that flowed into a spinning kick designed to shatter her sword if she blocked. Instead of blocking, she jumped over my leg and struck like a hawk; I was forced to take the attack in my thigh because I was off-balance. I got my own back as I continued the spin and converted the force into a punch that sent her flying backwards. With that, we'd both dropped below half health, and I could smell the blood in the water.

We closed again, attacking and dodging simultaneously. "Who are you? Why do you exist?" I growled as we danced past each other, her sword scraping past both my guard and my jacket to slice open my ribs while in return my knee snapped up, smashing into her stomach. Every word I spoke just made her angrier and angrier. "You couldn't have been in Aincrad, but you've been playing too long not to be! You live in this world, but you don't belong here!"

"Shut up!" Yuuki snapped, jumping into the air. Her skirt flapped behind her, and I snarled as I jumped to meet her, my bloodlust overriding anything else I could have planned. The line of her sword skill would miss me and I could be the first person to knock her off that high horse of hers, and then I would -

I felt her sword shift and pierce my chest, her body crashing into mine, but after that I didn't feel a thing - didn't feel my body hit the ground while bursting into flames, didn't hear the crowd shouting, didn't hear Argo or Din say anything. I just felt the rage and hatred burning higher and higher until that was all I could feel. Damn it, she'd beaten me?! This girl had defeated me and I had lost. Argo had told me to win and I'd failed her. I took advantage of the fact that nobody could hear me and screamed in rage, venting my anger and pain out to the world that didn't care in the slightest. When my lungs emptied I panted, feeling empty and drained and disappointed. I'd failed Argo. Damn it. I closed my eyes and sighed quietly. Fuck.

Gravity pressed on me again, and I opened my eyes to see that I was back with the world of the living on my bed back at home. "Hey, Ry," Argo said gently. "Too bad you lost, huh?" I didn't say anything. I couldn't look at her to see the look of condemnation in her eyes that I knew was going to be in there. I had been her weapon, and I had failed in my task; I had been blunted against Yuuki, that bitch. "Ry? Are you -"

Wordlessly, I logged out, not letting her say anything more. I couldn't bear it if she was disappointed with me. As soon as I could move again, I reached over and turned off my phone. I was a failure, and I didn't want to talk about it, no matter what the others would think. Fuck me, and fuck Zekken. "Damn. Damn, damn, damn." I'm not sure how long I just sat there on my bed, covering my eyes with my hands, but it was a while. My mind was spinning in circles, going over the incomplete mental picture in my head. It wasn't possible for Yuuki to have been in Aincrad, but that's the only way she could have been that good. Even Eugene wasn't that smooth, and he was the best fighter in Alfheim past Kazuto. Damn it, who the hell was she? Why had I lost to her? My strategies hadn't anticipated this, they'd been designed with Kazuto in mind as the top opponent, the hardest person to defeat. She shouldn't exist! Why had she been so strong?!

* * *

 **January 5** **th** **, 2026**

I missed school the next two days; I was sick the first, and Kana the second. She had visited me while I was sick, although I barely remember anything that happened that day aside from the general details. I think Asuna showed up at some point to say hello, but she had pretty much just dropped off my papers and left. A shame; I could have used an ear that wouldn't have been disappointed in me for my loss. The parent had given Kana the extra key to the house, so my girlfriend could come around whenever she wanted, which would be nice if she'd still want to come over. The next day, she wasn't in school, so I left to go to her house; as expected, she'd caught my bug and was bed-ridden, so I made her lunch and sat by her bedside, working on the assignments I'd missed. Sure, I'd ditched class, making it the second day in a row I was absent, but Kana – whatever she wanted or needed – took precedence over everything. _Everything_.

Still, while I sat by her bed doing my homework, my mind kept whispering to me, telling me I was a failure, a useless waste of space. I ignored those whispers through long practice, pushing them down to where I couldn't hear them and they couldn't affect me. Regardless of how I was handling that, though, Yuuki wouldn't get out of my mind; a part of me wanted to talk to Kazuto, see if he knew anything about Yuuki - he'd dueled her, so maybe he'd learned something about what was going on. Which was why I was standing out in front of the Kirigaya house, wearing the neat hoodie I had grabbed while finding one for Kana. It had a blood-red snake wrapping around the shoulders and hood, which was pretty neat. Plus, it kept my ears warm. After a bit, the door opened and I grinned slightly at Sugu. "Hey, Sugu."

"Hi, Nick," Sugu said, stepping back so that I could enter before giving me a nice hug. "Nice to see you. Here for Kazuto or me?"

"Kazuto," I said with a sigh, returning the hug automatically, "but you're a nice bonus."

"Flatterer. He's upstairs."

"Thanks, Sugu."

As I started to climb the stairs, Sugu called out my name and I turned to look at her. "Are you okay, Nick?" she asked, concern in her eyes.

I grinned slightly. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure. Just a little tired from being a plague bearer yesterday."

She frowned, but shrugged. "Okay, if you say so." She ducked back over to the living room, and a few seconds later I could hear the bright sounds of a TV show playing. I vaguely recognized the song as the intro tune to a show she really liked, but I'd never seen the show. Sugu kept trying to get me into it, but I'd always had other things to watch. I mean, watching overly-muscled men pose and go over the top in supernatural fight scenes sounded interesting enough, but it couldn't be that fascinating, though Sugu swore up and down it just kept getting better and better. Maybe I'll give it a shot eventually – she certainly seemed to get a kick out of it, and I'm pretty sure she wasn't watching it for the eye candy.

I went upstairs to Kazuto's room and knocked on the open door; he was wearing headphones, but he must have seen me in the reflection of his monitors, because he turned around with a small grin. "Hey, Nick," he said, taking off his headphones. "What's up? You said you wanted to chat?"

I shrugged and lied down on his bed, folding my arms and closing my eyes with a sigh. "You fought Yuuki, right? Zekken, the Absolute Sword?"

"Yeah, I did. What about her?"

"Did anything about her strike you as odd?"

Kazuto sighed, and I opened my eyes and propped myself up. "You figured it out too, huh?" His eyes were a little distant, and I had the feeling he was thinking about the fight he'd had with her. I hadn't seen it, but I had a feeling he was bothered about it. Maybe not as much as me, but then again he wasn't used to knowing things.

I grinned slightly. "Let's operate under the assumption that I know exactly what you're talking about but am playing dumb because it's more fun that way."

Kazuto grinned. "Aren't you just supposed to play dumb?"

"Meh, whatever." I shifted until my head was dangling off the bed and I was staring at him upside-down. "So, what's bothering you about the fight?" I had a few things that were bugging me, but I wanted to hear Kazuto's side of the story first.

Kazuto swiveled in his chair to look at me seriously, though it was hard to do that when I was staring at him from his bed upside-down. "I think... I think she's had too much experience with the virtual world," he said slowly. "The way she was moving... it was too fluid. She acted like she had complete control over her body in that world, and the only people that move like that are people that spent time in SAO. But... she couldn't have been one of the ten thousand that were trapped in there."

"Because she's too fast," I said. "Because her reflexes and reaction speeds are greater than yours."

"Yeah... It's like she lived in the virtual world or something."

I sighed and sat up, turning so I could face him directly. "Know what I think, Kazuto? I think she's definitely got enough hours logged in the game to be on par with the time we spent, if not more. But that would mean she'd have to be playing VRMMORPGS," - I pronounced the acronym literally, as 'vermorpuggahs', mainly out of strange habit - "since they came out with the AmuSphere more or less constantly. And with school and work and needing to take care of the body, that's just not possible for a normal person. Something is going on."

"Theoretically, it's possible," Kazuto mused, hand on his chin. "There're enough hours in the day that a player could manage to play for long enough to match or even surpass the time we spent in SAO. Thing is... The AmuSphere is designed to log a player out when their body gets too dangerously weak."

"In order to avoid fun things like heart attacks or dying in game," I nodded. "So dehydration and stuff like that would forcibly log them out. The Aincrad survivors spent two years in game, all day every day. Off the top of my head, that's about seven-thirty days, times twenty-four is..." I blinked rapidly while doing the math in my head. The numbers split apart and my fingers flicked out as I manipulated the digits, seeing them in my mind while moving them with my hands. "Fourteen-six hundred plus one-twenty plus twenty-eight hundred is…" Everything was split apart, now to put them together. "Twenty-nine-twenty is," – the numbers combined and I slid them to the right with a flick of my left hand – "seventeen-five-twenty hours in the game. Even assuming that they play for twelve hours a day, the theoretical max for the AmuSphere, that's still over fourteen hundred days. It's literally impossible for her to have matched our playtime, not without becoming dangerously weak. And before long, the AmuSphere wouldn't let her play anymore."

"Yeah, that's what I was thinking," Kazuto sighed. "But I can't think of any other explanation, since she couldn't have been in Aincrad."

I growled under my breath and sighed, throwing my head back to stare at the ceiling. "Fuck... I hate it when the picture doesn't make any sense. We're missing the pieces that connect these two edges, but I can't see the image that connects what we know."

I heard Kazuto's chair move again, and I straightened up to see that he had turned his chair back to his monitors. "We both lost, huh," he murmured, and I glanced at his screens to see the forums up. "They say you were talking to her. What did you say?"

"Nothing, really," I admitted with a grunt. "I was more just ranting at her about how nothing was making sense."

"Whatever you said, it pissed her off," he told me. "Apparently after you lost, she just... left. The people are saying she looked like she wanted to kill something, so they're glad she stopped the challenge for the day." Grinning, he glanced at me. "When you piss people off, you don't do it halfway, huh?"

I shrugged. "I don't even know what I said to piss her off so badly. I mean, if I'm trying, that kind of reaction is more or less expected. But just by accident? Either I hit something _really_ sensitive, or she's just got anger issues." Like me.

Kazuto glanced at me again, then frowned slightly. "Nick, are you doing okay?"

"Why does everyone keep asking that? Do I have shadows under my eyes or something?"

"You do, actually."

"...Oh." I took my glasses off and rubbed at my eyes, yawning as I did so. "Don't worry about it, I'm just still a little drained from being sick yesterday. Two or three more days should bring me back up to normal. Kana managed to catch whatever I had, but I think she's gonna be up and running a little faster than I am." She didn't seem nearly as out of it as I had been, and she was fairly coherent when I left her to go speak with Kazuto. "Don't worry, we'll be fine."

* * *

I was worried.

My phone beeped, and I glanced at it to see Din's concerned face. "Hi, Mom," he said. "Are you feeling any better?" I smiled and assured him I was feeling fine, and a little bit of that worry melted. "That's good," he said. "When both you and Dad got sick, I was a little concerned..."

"Just a bug," I assured our son. "Nothing major. Nick tends to be healthier than the rest of us, so when something manages to get past his immune system it's really nasty. I'm just lucky I got the weaker version." He'd told me a story about the last time he'd been sick; it was some sort of stomach bug he'd caught in the seventh grade that left him delirious for a few days. He'd been reading Lewis Carroll at the time, and in his own words ' _Through the Looking-Glass_ made sense'. How frabjous.

"Okay." Din smiled at me, and I smiled in return. "Whatcha doin'?"

"Right now, I'm doing the homework that I missed thanks to my sickness." Bless Asuna for dropping things off two days in a row, the sweetheart. I owed her for that. "It's lit, so it's boring, but it's something I have to do."

"Can I see?" I held up my phone to the assignment I was working on, and Din hummed in thought. "The answer to that question is -"

"Din," I mock-scolded, "while I appreciate your enthusiasm the goal is to make sure _I_ understand the material, not my son. You giving me the answers somewhat defeats the point."

He blushed slightly. "Oh. Dad asks me for answers every now and then, so I thought..."

I sighed, absently rubbing at my forehead. "That's because once Nick stops caring, he throws rules and common sense to the wind. Hm... Instead of just giving him the answers, how about you help him come to the conclusion himself?"

Din frowned slightly, tilting his head in the same way Nick did. "Um... How is that any different, functionally? Dad's smart enough to reverse-engineer the method that reached the answer anyway, so..." He trailed off and shrugged.

"It's the principle of the thing," I said finally when I couldn't think of an actual good reason. "It's training him how to think in ways that will be useful later on in life. Critical thinking, ability to interpret the same thing in different ways, things like that." Din didn't look too convinced, but he eventually nodded and said he wouldn't just give Nick the answers anymore. I thanked him kindly and he closed the connection after saying goodbye.

The second he was gone, I sighed and leaned forward, resting my head on my knees. Normally I'd be doing my homework at my table, but I was still in bed since I was sick; it made it very convenient to hug my knees against my chest. Something was wrong, I could feel it inside me. While a traitorous part of my mind said that everything was fine, that the upset feeling in my stomach was just because I was sick, I told that little whisper to jump into a fire and focused on what was actually wrong. Ever since Nick had fought Zekken, he'd... I couldn't put my finger on it, but something was wrong. He'd refused to speak to me after he died, immediately logging out, and he even turned off his phone so that nobody could get ahold of him. I'd gotten a concerned call from Suguha after she tried calling his cell and it went straight to voicemail; after she hung up, I'd asked Din and he'd confirmed that Nick's phone was in his room, just off.

That in itself would have been worrying - Nick _never_ turned his phone off if he could help it - but to make things worse he had gotten sick the next day. When I went to visit him, he seemed normal enough after allowing for the sickness, and when I'd woken up this morning he was by my side, helping me sit up and eat lunch. Normally, I would have been overjoyed to see him acting relatively normal, but this wasn't the normal I'd come to expect over the past year. This 'normal' was harder and harsher, but almost brittle, I think. He was keeping a good mask on, but I could see under it just a little bit. Honestly, what worried me the most was the fact that he was hiding anything from me in the first place. He knew he could talk to me, or anyone else in our friend circle.

Ugh. I snorted and shook my head. Why couldn't he just... talk to one of us like a normal person? It would make life so much easier. I loved him, but there were times when he was just impossible.

I shook my head and straightened up, picking up my pencil and worksheet. I needed to get this done so I could hurry up and go to sleep. I was sleepy and I wanted nothing more than to just close my eyes and go to sleep, but I couldn't do that until my work was done. I had a reputation to keep as always having the answers, so it just wouldn't do to have unfinished assignments. I yawned again, and decided that the studying could wait until tomorrow; I just needed to finish these few questions and I could go to sleep. "...Hey, Din? I need your help..."

* * *

 **January 6** **th** **, 2026**

"Hooray! Kana's back!" Rika cheered, grinning at me as I sat down at the lunch table. "Hope you're feeling better today."

"I am, thanks," I said with a grin. "Don't worry, you won't catch a cold. I'm pretty sure you can't, anyway."

"Hey!" she complained. "Not nice." Then she frowned as she looked around. "Where's your boy toy?"

"Nick said he had to talk to the teacher, catch up on what we missed yesterday," I said with a shrug. "He said he'd brought his own lunch today, so he was just going to eat in the classroom while he was doing any work that needed to be done."

"Aw," she half-whined, pouting slightly. "I wanted to tease him about losing to Zekken."

I raised an eyebrow. "From what I've heard, he did better than you or Suguha."

"Eheh... Yeah, probably. But it's still funny that Nick lost." She leaned forward. "Is it true that he managed to piss her off so badly that she cut his body into tiny pieces?"

I stared at the ceiling, silently praying for strength. "Payment," I said dully, and a few seconds later a cookie made its way onto my tray. Mmm, chocolate chip, my favorite. "Not true," I said, nibbling at the treat. "He did piss her off by saying something, nobody knows for certain, but she just stabbed him through the chest for the kill. Nothing fancy like dicing him up." Rika sighed, clearly disappointed that she'd wasted her cookie for that. "And just as a tip, I'd avoid mentioning anything about Zekken to him, okay? He seems a little weird about the fight, so I'm not sure what's going on."

"Is Nick still absent?" Asuna asked, sitting down with her lunchbox. Kazuto took a seat opposite her, conveniently next to me. I smiled and shifted over, making room for him, and he flashed me a quick smile before returning to stare intently at the lunchbox. "Here you go, Kirito," Asuna said primly as she opened the lunchbox and handed him a sandwich.

He grinned at his girlfriend. "You're the best, Asuna." She smiled prettily and looked to the side.

See, look at them. They're nice and functional. Why couldn't Nick and I have something like that?

Halfway through his lunch, Kazuto looked around. "Where's Nick? Not still sick, is he?"

"He's going through his missed work," I told him. "Seems like he didn't bother doing it yesterday, so he's catching up now." Lazy bum. At least he's catching up on his work now, if only because I glared at him until he said he'd do it. "He's already got his lunch, so he won't be joining us."

Kazuto nodded. "Okay. Asuna, how was your vacation?" he asked, changing the topic.

Asuna shifted slightly before smiling at him. "It was fine," she said. "I would have preferred to stay here, but I had to visit family, y'know?"

"So did I," Keiko sighed, and glanced at me to see if I'd told Asuna anything. I just smirked at her, and she shuddered before looking at Asuna. "Mine wasn't so bad, but I still have a lot of homework to do before it's due."

Asuna smiled maternally. "Well, we'll just have to fix that later, now won't we?" Keiko sighed and hung her head before muttering an agreement. "Good. I'm sure _you_ did your homework, Rika?" Rika, who had up until that question been grinning at Keiko, suddenly blanched. "Of course not," Asuna sighed. "Well, looks like we're all going to be doing work this evening." I didn't have too much to do, but it couldn't hurt to keep them company, right? I might be able to help them out with their work; I wouldn't even charge all that much, since I'd just be teaching them instead of giving them the answers. I'm reminded of that old saying - 'Give a man a fish, he's fed for a day; teach a man to fish, and he's fed for a lifetime'. I had heard Nick parody it before as 'Give a man a fire, he's warm for the night; set a man on fire, he's warm for the rest of his life', and after I'd finished my horrified giggling I'd looked up the original. I was in the business of giving people fish, as it were, so it would be nice to teach them for a change. Ooh, maybe we could grab Suguha and Sinon and make it a girl's... er, a girl's adventure day? Whatever.

Absently, I glanced at the empty seat beside me, where Nick would usually be sitting. I hope he's okay.

* * *

 **Uh oh. Trouble in paradise? Poor Nick, poor Kana, poor everyone that's caught up in this particular mess.**

 **It's also come to my attention, by that thing known as watching a few episodes and listening to dialogue, that I done goofed – their winter break didn't end until the 10** **th** **. Unfortunately, I already had a few things planned out that required them to be in classes already, so let's just assume that time's super mutable at the moment and it's acting weird. Yep. Totally not a plot hole. Yep. I think's we're in the Anime Time Zone, where school is only in session when it's plot-convenient. (ATZ is –i UTC, for what it's worth)**

 **If Sugu ever gets him to watch that show of hers, Nick's totally going to make ORAORAORA an OSS.**

 **Many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.**

 **(…also the joke is that good things come to those who wait and Argo waited for Rythin for a year)**


	19. Forest Home

**Chapter 19: Forest Home**

* * *

 **January 6** **th** **, 2026**

I hummed to myself cheerfully as I let the numbers swirl in my head, my fingers twitching as I worked my mental magic. Everything fell into place, and I nodded with satisfaction as I turned my attention to the screen and typed in the answer. Hah... If only dealing with that bitch had been as easy doing my homework, I wouldn't have to worry about anything. Yuuki... who are you? _What_ are you?

"Hey..." I looked up at Silica's pitiful whine and smiled at the sight of her pleading eyes staring at me. "Can you help me? I don't get this..."

Sighing and shaking my head fondly, I slid my completed homework to the side, dismissing the menu, and patted the carpet next to me. "Come on over and I'll give you a hand."

"Can't you come here? I don't wanna move…"

I gave Silica a put-upon look. "But it's waaarrrrrrm here," I whined. The fire was crackling merrily behind me, and I saw Silica's tail twitch as she stared at the golden source of warmth. "C'mon, Silica. I don't want to move either, you know."

"Fiiiiine," she sighed. With another huge sigh, she stood up from the couch and crossed the room to sink down next to me, not caring that her tail landed on mine. I didn't really care all that much either, but I still took the time to shift it out of the way. "It's this one, here."

"Let's see." I scanned the homework problem and grinned. "Ah, that's an easy one."

Silica rolled her eyes. "You say that about all of them."

"That's because they're all easy," I sniffed. "Anyway, this is how you solve it..."

We were relaxing happily in the log cabin on the 22nd Floor; everyone from school was there, in various stages of completing their homework and resting. As Silica worked through the problem, helped by my gentle guidance, I scanned the room out of habit. Liz was curled up on the couch, reading a book - she was the only one that wasn't wearing more comfortable clothing, but it wasn't her battle uniform. By the content smile on her face, I could tell she was enjoying her book. Sitting next to the blacksmith, Leafa was reading a passage out loud, gnawing absently at the knuckle of her index finger as she did so; her clothing of choice was a pale green dress that exposed her shoulders and way too much of her chest for my personal level of comfort. And if I, as her _surrogate_ brother, felt that she was showing off too much of her chest, I could only imagine how Kirito reacted to it.

Argo and Asuna were curled up side by side on the other couch; my lovely girlfriend had already finished her work and was tapping away at several message screens at once, her finger flying over the virtual keyboard. Her brown cloak had the hood pulled back and the front open to reveal a brown blouse with gold edging. I grinned slightly as her tail twitched and hit a key on Asuna's keyboard, causing the Undine to sigh and erase whatever Argo had accidentally typed; my other sister was working on something with graphs and charts, so I figured it was some science or another. Her pale blue skirt matched her hair, and she looked comfortable enough.

Silica, whose eyes were starting to droop shut, was wearing a blue robe with gold highlights; realizing she was about to fall asleep, I poked her cheek gently. "Nyah," she mumbled as she shook her head. "So sleepy. Thanks, Rythin..." Yawning and rubbing at her eyes, she stumbled back to the couch and slumped down next to Asuna. Glad I could help, though there's no way she was gonna stay awake for long. It was a combination of the warmth of the room, the peaceful sounds of everyone doing their homework, and one particular source of sleepeons. Those tiny invisible sleep particles that make people tired. They're totally real, and Kirito definitely gives them off.

I glanced at my friend; he was fast asleep on his rocking chair, Pina curled up on his stomach and Yui fast asleep on Pina's wing. With all three of them snoozing so comfortably, is it really a surprise that everyone was falling asleep? With the fire snapping and popping at my back, I slumped over to the side and got comfortable on the carpet, letting my eyes... just drift... shut...

* * *

And I dreamed.

I dreamed of the night we had unlocked this safe haven, strangely enough; being surrounded by my home away from home away from home - because Argo's side was my home away from home? Eh, whatever, I'm dreaming I don't have to be entirely coherent - and all my family must have made my subconscious think about it. I looked down to see my dagger sheathed on my arm and my red jacket flapping from a draft in the dark cave, and I smirked. Ah, yes, that's right. I remember now. It was the 24th - just before Christmas - and Ymir had released the next ten floors of New Aincrad as a Christmas present to everyone in the game. As for why we'd all gathered together the instant it came out to clear the first boss? Well, Kirito and Asuna's house was on the 22nd Floor, and there was no way in hell they weren't going to buy that log cabin. I'd kill anyone that tried if I had to. I'd promised them as such.

The dream seemed to flow in fast-forward; I was in the fight with the 21st Floor's boss before I knew it, sitting cross-legged on top of the cliff behind the casters. I would have enjoyed fighting the boss, but I had been approached by Eugene at the start of the battle and he'd asked me to lead the think-tank. With no real reason to say no, I'd agreed - after all, the rest of my friends were raring to go, and most of the monsters on the Floor had been immune to poison. So, why the heck not, right? As I dreamed about studying the boss, I could feel a pebble digging into my lower thigh. Obnoxious little thing, and I shifted to sweep at it with my hand. When I settled back down, I was relieved to feel nothing but smooth stone under my legs. With my hands lying flat on the stone beside me, I watched the boss.

And what a boss it was - a massive hunk of stone that had taken the shape of a man, only twenty times our size; intricate lines crossed over the gigantic pentagonal torso of the boss, glowing with a blue light that offset the eerie red gleam from its single eye. With a rumbling roar it raised its monolithic - heh - arms before slamming them into the ground, sending up monoliths - heh heh - of stone to smash through the ranks of the fighters. This wasn't the first time it did the move, se we were prepared; the tanks all guarded properly, and the squishier players were either out of range - like me, like Sinon and Asuna and the other ranged fighters - or had managed to absorb the damage of the blow with their defensive buffs. I grinned and scratched at my chin when I saw Silica balancing precariously on the tip of one of the spikes, Pina hovering around her. She really had come a long way from when we first met, hadn't she? I'm proud of the little scamp.

I gestured absently to Asuna, and she raised her wand. "Þeír sér lind ásynja, burt eimi og sverð," she chanted, and with a flick of her wand the magic rippled out. The wave of magic pinged every single one of the red-covered players, and their bodies glowed with a green light. Butterfly Shield, I believe - Asuna would feel the impact of attacks and her MP would be drained with each strike, but by and large a good defensive spell. With a roar, Agil leapt into the air and slammed his axe down on the boss; an explosion rocked through the chamber and smoke filled the air. I merely twitched my fingers as I pretended to puppet the players down below, and as if I really was controlling them they acted to my will. With Yui clinging to his back, Kirito charged the boss, his sword glowing a bright blue, and struck with a shout; his attacks combined with Agil's forced the boss to stumble backwards, red lines crisscrossing its chest, and I flicked both hands outward. As the assembled front-line players struck in a wave, I grinned. We'd been fighting this thing for an hour now - stupid high defense stone monsters. Bleugh - and I was resorting to stupid theatrics just to entertain myself.

From my right came a beam of blue light, and I glanced to the side to see Chrysheight casting a spell, his gem-tipped staff pointed at the boss. Nodding in satisfaction - he remembered the pattern quickly enough, once more making good on his promise to be useful in the fight - I turned back to watch the effects. As ice crept up the golem's legs, Klein jumped in the air, his sword blazing in his hands, and struck with a shout. Silica jumped from her perch and spun her dagger in her hands, water streaming from her blade, and stabbed down, leaving a gash as the water echoed her movements and struck like a whip. While Liz stabbed at the golem's right leg with her electrified mace, Leafa attacked from the left, her katana slicing out swiftly and surely with the speed and force of a hurricane. Heh, she really did love the wind element, didn't she? Well, I guess it fit with her racial bonus and personality. Red lines scored the blue runes, and I smiled as it shuddered in pain. The plan was working; we'd only had two casualties so far, and they were people that hadn't listened to my plan and just charged in like idiots.

I waved a hand and the Salamander mages gestured, casting their spells; a series of fireballs converged on the boss and it went up in flames, the heat from the explosion even reaching me from my perch. The flames licked at its body, but it was made of stone, after all, so not much happened. I twitched my fingers, but the players didn't move, and I let out a quiet, "Tch." A shame, really. I enjoyed my little game while it lasted. The boss raised its arm and then swung, the heavy blow sending a clump of players flying. They really should have gotten away from the strike zone. C'mon, people, we've fought this thing, how can you not have realized where it was going to attack.

A flash of light to the right caught my eye and I turned to see Asuna drawing her rapier. "I'm going in!" she shouted, not waiting for me to say anything at all before lunging off the cliff, her combat skirt flapping as she fell.

"Wait - fucking - Asuna!" I half shouted, half sighed. "Rrggh."

I felt someone tap my shoulder, and I glanced over to see Sinon standing there. "Having some troubles, Tactician?" she purred.

"Just wait for my signal," I sighed before rolling my eyes and watching Asuna; she landed lightly on the ground amidst the dust from its attack. I couldn't see from where I was sitting, but I could picture it - her eyes hard, she'd pull her rapier from its sheath and it would be glowing a bright... red, yes, I can see the color from here. She would jump and stab it in the chest, fortunately preventing it from countering, before landing a slash on its leg and leading into a rising slash that would put her into a perfect position for a Crucifixion. She would then be in midair and perfectly helpless for the counterattack. Why do people jump when they fight? It never ends well. I raised my hand and watched as Asuna leapt into action. Stab, slash, rising slash, stabby times five... Exactly as anticipated. And sure enough, the boss's eye flashed after her attack finished, and I clenched my fist. I heard Sinon's bow twang, and I watched as the arrow streaked forward, bursting into flame before separating into five and slamming into the boss's head, saving Asuna from its counter. "Thank you, Sinon."

"Whatever. Asuna!" she called out, and the Undine looked over. "Keep going, I've got your back!"

"Why can't you be that nice to me?" I whined, smiling as Kirito raced forward, shouting for Asuna as he went.

"Because you're an asshole and she's actually nice?"

"Fair point."

Kirito started a Sword Skill well ahead of the boss's actual punch, countering it neatly and reinforcing my suspicions that Yui was reading the patterns; he fell back, and Asuna lunged forward from behind him. They really did fight well together, like they knew where the other person was without having to look. How sweet. Asuna's rapier became enveloped in a blue light and she smashed into the center of the golem, where a human's heart would be - and as sparks and crackling electricity flew from the impact point, I could watch her put every ounce of effort she had into breaking the boss's body. With a final surge of effort and a shout, she pierced its body and burst through, soaring through the air majestically as it crumbled to pieces behind her. Well done, Asuna. I'm proud of you.

I stood up and brushed my pants off, nodding to Sinon. "Well done, Sinon. Glad to have you on board with Trinity."

She just nodded and slung her bow over her shoulder. "Mmm."

"Y'know, you don't have to play the strong silent type here. This isn't GGO."

"Bite me." Then I grinned, showing off my fangs, and she gave me a flat look. "On second thought, don't. You might be diseased." I always liked bantering with her.

"Hundred percent disease free. I even got my shots in Freelia a week ago. Anyway, if you feel up to it, go bug Genie or the leader of Wolfsbane for some pay." I shrugged. "They might cough up a few coins, but since this was a free-for-all and we weren't actually hired I doubt we'll get anything."

"Where are you going?"

I grinned. "To the next floor. The others have a house to buy."

Sinon shrugged and folded her arms. "I'll come too." I just grinned and patted her shoulder before shoving her off the cliff. "Rythin you asshooooooole!" she screamed as I jumped off after her, giggling as I jumped off rocks here and there so that I wasn't falling the entire way. Unlike Sinon. Who landed with a thud before trying to shoot me down with a few arrows.

After the two of us, now battered and bruised but grinning at each other as I pulled an arrow out of my shoulder and she rubbed at the base of her spine, joined the rest of our party, we all ran up the stairs - well, Silica ran up the stairs racing Pina, while the rest of us took a slightly more calm pace. Granted, 'calm' in this situation meant that we were skipping every other step, but hey, potatoes, tomatoes. Either way, Silica was the first to reach the 22nd Floor. "I beat ya!" she cheered, giggling. Klein was the second one up, and we all spilled out in a blob after him to bask in the sun and take in the scenery. It was almost perfect; exactly the way I remembered it, from the pine forest stretching around the land to the crystal-clear lake reflecting the setting sun. Argo and I had been very detailed in our descriptions of this floor when we'd given our data on the floors, and the designers had put in the effort to match it, and for that I was truly grateful. This place was... well, it was the second home of my family, and if I could do anything to help them out I would.

"Alright!" Klein shouted to the rest of us. "We made it to Floor 22!" The others all stood on the hill, clearly basking in the scenery. That's right... None of them had ever been here before, had they? Argo and I were the only ones, other than Kirito and Asuna, who had visited after clearing the floor, and my girlfriend was currently meeting with a client for buying information. Sadly, she had been unable to join us for the fight.

Beside me, Liz stretched indolently, grunting slightly. When she made a slight sound of curiosity I turned to glance at her, only to see her looking off to the side. I followed her gaze and smiled when I saw Asuna staring out over the water longingly. Liz smiled as well. "Hey, Asuna," she called out. "If you're hanging around because of the Teleport Gate, don't bother. We can activate it."

Asuna turned to look at all of us; we were all standing around doing nothing anyway, so why not, right? Sinon was a few paces away from the rest of the group, watching us talk, and Silica was playing with Pina, but other than those two outliers we all nodded as her gaze fell on us in turn. With the confirmation that it was okay for her to get going, she beamed. "Thanks a lot you guys!" she exclaimed, gracing us with another smile before turning and running down to the water's edge with Kirito. Simultaneously, they took wing and soared off into the sky together, hand in hand. How sweet.

"Where are they going?" Din asked quietly, and I glanced over at the Nav Pixie to see him resting in my pocket, looking up at me with a stoic look on his face. He'd get emotional soon enough, especially if he played with Yui, so I wasn't worried.

I grinned. "To recover some memories they should have gotten back a long time ago."

"Oh." He looked out over the lake at the swiftly disappearing forms of my best friends. "I do not understand."

I shrugged. "Ask Yui later. She'll be able to explain it better than I can." I stretched and cracked my neck. "Well, I'll be off. Gonna go check out the place, and also because I have something for them. Open the teleport gate for me, will ya?" As soon as I heard Leafa's murmur of agreement, I jumped into the air and snapped my wings open, soaring off after Kirito and Asuna. I took it slow; I knew this would be an emotional time for the loving couple, and I'd need to give them their time to get through it together. Still, I couldn't stall forever, despite landing once I found the pier and wooden path that would lead me to their house and walking the rest of the way. It was a comfortable walk, and as I wandered idly down the path I thought of the first time I'd come to their house. It... it was with Argo. That night that I had broken down and just admitted everything had probably been the best thing to happen to me.

I mean, it still felt like shit at the time, but hindsight is twenty-twenty after all, isn't it?

I reached the log cabin and I was glad to see that the house had been purchased already. Grinning, I stepped up to the porch and knocked on the door. It opened, and Kirito grinned at me. "Hey."

"Yo." I walked into the house, raising an eyebrow at the complete lack of furniture. "Hm. I somehow remember it to be... a little more... furnished." Asuna smiled at me, and a second later I was tackled by a very happy Yui - who was her real size. I spun around, lifting her up, and grinned at the little tyke. "Hey, kiddo. Happy to be home?"

"Yeah!" She beamed at me, and I set her down before patting her head gently.

"By the way, present for you," I said, swiping open my menu and drawing out a bag. "Enjoy." I tossed it to Kirito.

"Rythin," he sighed when he looked inside. "C'mon. Once I could accept, but not twice."

"What? It's just a million Yrd."

"Don't you dare say you've been saving it," Asuna scolded me. "Because we already got married."

I grinned. "The 'Asuna and Kirito got their house back' fund?" The two just shook their head in unison. "Is it really that strange that I'd go out of my way to make my family happy?"

"Nick... Thanks." Kirito smiled at me. "It means a lot."

* * *

"And, Ry's asleep," I sighed. That took all of five minutes after he finished his homework. He seems remarkably relaxed, though. I think he'll be out of it for a while - he seemed tired in class today. I glanced around - all of us girls were focusing on our work, though Silica seemed to be nodding off. Once, twice... And there she goes, falling onto Asuna's shoulder.

"Eh?" Asuna mumbled, looking up from her work. Then she caught sight of the sleeping Silica and smiled, poking at her ear. "Wake up," she said gently. Silica's ear just twitched, so Asuna patted Silica a few more times. "If you start napping now it'll be hard to get to sleep tonight." Grumbling, Silica sat up, rubbing at her eyes. "Winter break is over and they're collecting the homework in three days, and it won't finish itself. Sinon finished hers before heading back home to visit. Just sayin'."

Yawning widely enough to show her little fangs, Silica stretched. There should be a law about being that cute. "I'm so sleepy," she mumbled.

"Poor thing," Asuna said. "It's probably because the room's too warm. Rythin's out like a light, and I caught you yawning a few times too, Argo." I grinned. Guilty as charged. "Maybe it's a Cait Sith thing. You want me to turn down the heat?"

Leafa laughed, having stopped reading her passage sometime after Silica dozed off. "It's not the heat, it's the masters of the Sleep skill over there." I looked over to see Kirito asleep in his rocking chair, Pina curled up on his stomach and Yui napping on her wing.

"Huh?" Asuna asked, before turning to look for herself. When she realized what Leafa was talking about, she smiled. "That figures." Behind her, Silica's head started nodding, and I realized my fellow Cait Sith was starting to fall asleep again. "He's been working hard on his project ever since he got back from GGO," she said with a smile.

"You mean that gizmo for Yui and Din he demoed the other day at Agil's?" Liz asked.

Reminded, I glanced around, but Din wasn't anywhere to be seen - until I looked closer and realized he was sleeping curled up next to Yui. It was adorable, actually.

"Oh! The Mechaphonics!" Leafa exclaimed.

"No, it's called 'Mechatronics'," we all said in a unison deadpan. Minus Silica, because the Cait Sith was still trying desperately to stay awake.

"Yeah, that," Leafa laughed. "Anyway, he's been napping like there's no tomorrow. Look at him! He's making me feel sleepy."

As if on cue, Liz yawned, and we all had a good giggle at that. Still, Leafa was right - looking at Kirito sleeping in his rocking chair, and Rythin on the floor, tail-tip twitching, was making me feel kinda sleepy myself...

* * *

"Oh my god, seriously?" Leafa's exasperated sigh and a light thump jerked me awake from my catnap, and I blinked. Wow. I really did fall asleep. Whoops! I hastily finished sending off the message I had been in the middle of writing, closing out a deal with a player trying to get some data on some other player. "Well, at least you woke up, Argo. Hey Asuna, wake up!" I glanced over to see Asuna and Silica slumped against each other, though as I watched she shifted and opened her eyes. On the other couch, Liz was fast asleep, her book lying on her face, and I grinned as the hard-cover book slid off to hit the ground with a light thud. "That goes for you, too!" Leafa continued, glaring at Liz.

"Huh?" the pink-haired Leprechaun grunted sleepily, opening her eyes. "'m totally awake..."

I just snickered and shook my head. "Wow. We really need to do something to wake up, or we'll all end up sleeping through our study time."

Beside me, Silica focused on her homework, pumping her fists to psyche herself up; Leafa read over her shoulder, smiling at the younger girl's determination. "God, will you look at that?" Liz muttered, resting her arms on the back of the couch. "It's like they're daring us to stay awake." I glanced over to see the two guys still fast asleep. Rythin seemed to be twitching slightly, and I got a mischievous idea. The girls would probably like it, too... Maybe after we finish our homework.

"I'll make us some tea and it'll wake us right up," Asuna giggled.

While she was fixing the tea on the stove nearby, I stood up with a luxurious stretch, trying to get all the kinks out of my spine. While the nap felt nice, it did mean I slept in an awkward position, so when I felt my spine pop I grinned happily. Ah, that feels nice. With nothing better to do until Asuna finished the tea or I got a new client, I wandered over to the window and rested my forehead on the cold glass, letting the cold shock my system fully awake. Asuna and Kirito's house felt warm. Obviously, that was because of the fire in the fireplace, but it felt warm beyond that. Like this place was actually a home, instead of just a place to sleep. Their previous apartment had that feeling, as nice as it was, and... If I'm going to be honest, our apartment has that feeling. I'm pretty sure Ry's felt it too, because he tends to avoid being in the house longer than he has to be. Not that our apartment in Yggdrasil City was uncomfortable in any way other than maybe being a bit too small, of course; it's just that this log cabin had something that the apartment lacked.

"Looking at the snow?"

I glanced over my shoulder at Asuna, smiling as I accepted the steaming cup of tea. "It's very pretty."

"We should go outside!" Silica chirped, bouncing to her feet, her homework either abandoned or completed. If I had to guess, I'd put money on the former. Without waiting for anyone else, she grabbed Leafa's hand and dragged the beautiful blonde outside with her; the rest of us exchanged a glance and smiled as we followed them. "It's so pretty!" Silica gasped. "It must have stopped snowing while we were asleep!"

Immediately, Silica and Leafa started playing in the snow, while Liz, Asuna, and I stood by the railing, sipping at our cups of tea as we watched the two younger girls have fun. "Oh!" Liz said to Asuna after taking a sip. "Have you heard the news?"

"What?"

"Y'know, about Zekken. Don't tell me you haven't heard!"

Asuna frowned and tilted her head slightly. So that's where Ry picked it up! "Zek...ken? Is that some kind of rare item?"

I sighed at the ignorance of my friend. "Oh, Asuna, I've _failed_ you," I moaned melodramatically as I draped myself over her shoulders. "How could someone so near and dear to my heart be so ill-informed?"

"Because you charge for everything," Liz pointed out dryly.

I straightened up and paused. "Point," I admitted in a normal voice. "But still!" I continued, whirling to face Asuna again. "Oh, this just hurts my soul, knowing someone is missing information. If only there was some way to help them learn..."

"Don't even try," Liz said. "Zekken's the name of a player," she said to Asuna while I pouted and sipped at my tea sullenly. It was very good tea. "Actually, it's not their handle. It's more like a nickname."

I grinned, my previous sulking over. "Y'know, like Berserk Healer." Asuna stared at me flatly. "Or Lightning Flash."

"I'm not going to give you any of the cake."

I flashed a grin. "I'll be good."

"Anyway, this player's so badass someone called 'em Zekken. The name caught on, and there ya go," Liz finished, leaning back against the railing. I resigned myself to listening to these precious secrets being spilled and leaned on the railing myself, watching Silica and Leafa scoop snow up and roll it into snowballs. "It means Absolute Sword." Liz grinned, then muttered, "Absolute Sword's better, though." She sipped at her tea, shaking her head. "Either way, this player's tough."

"Really..." Asuna murmured, and her eyes went distant. I knew my friend well enough to know what she was imagining - a tall man with a massive sword strapped to his back, clad in full plate armor. As for how I knew what her fantasy would look like, well, we'd read the same books. ...Books being the best way to describe our reading material in polite company. "So, uh, when did you first hear about this Zekken person, Liz? Argo?"

"I dunno," Liz said, putting her finger to her chin and looking up at the sky. "I guess the first time was around New Year's, or something."

"December 29th. The first public appearance was on the 27th, as far as I'm aware," I provided helpfully.

"So, yeah, about a week or so ago," Liz said. "Oh, duh! That explains why you're so out of the loop about it."

I snapped. "Of course! You were visiting family over New Year's, weren't you? Your family's compound in Kyoto. I believe you left... the 29th, if I'm not mistaken."

Asuna smiled weakly. "Of course you'd know, Argo," she teased gently, though her heart didn't seem to be into it. "I was having a good time, then you two had to bring _that_ up." Ouch. Sore subject?

"Listen to the rich girl, rebelling against her cushy life." Liz wasn't sympathetic in the slightest. "Sounds like a drag."

"A drag is exactly what it was," Asuna sighed. "I had to sit on my knees in a kimono all day, greeting people." I winced, my knees twinging in empathy. "I brought my AmuSphere along, figured I could dive at night while everyone else was asleep." She sighed explosively. "But you know what? The guest house I was in didn't have Wi-Fi. Fun, right?" She looked down. "It wasn't."

Her eyes went distant again, and I studied my friend carefully. I wasn't as good at reading her as Rythin might have been, but I could still pick out a few things. If I had to guess, she was having some family problems, and it probably revolved around being trapped in the death game for two years. Rythin had told me about how reckless she was being during the 21st Floor's boss fight, and if she was having problems with her family, it would only logically lead to her being desperate to reclaim her home here. Aw, sweetie...

"Asuna?" Liz asked after a few seconds when Asuna had been lost in thought. She leaned forward until her face was almost touching Asuna's. "Asuna? Asuna... You even listening?" she asked with a sigh. "Hello."

"Huh?" Asuna blinked rapidly and came back to the real world. "S-sorry. I just remembered s-something lame."

"I wonder what that could be?" Liz said with a smirk. "Were your folks tryin' to hook you up with someone?" Her voice took on a decidedly suggestive tone.

"N-no, not at all!" Asuna shook her head so wildly that her tea sloshed. "Forget I said anything." Huh, her parents really did try to set her up with someone? Ouch. I wonder if Kirito knows about that...

"Okay, okay, just kidding," Liz laughed, sitting on the railing.

"So, anyway, is this tough new player a PKer or something?" Asuna asked.

I grinned at the obvious change of subject. "Bzzt! Wrong. Zekken is just a simple duelist, nothing more."

Glancing over to where Silica and Leafa were playing, I watched as Leafa pushed two berries into a lump of snow; with the leaves she'd already placed, it looked like a tiny adorable snow bunny. Y'know, since her avatar's so, uh, developed – I had a brief moment of silence to mourn my own size – it's easy to forget she's only a year older than Silica. "Were they in any tournaments?" Asuna asked, perplexed.

"Nope," Liz replied, popping the 'P'. "Far as I can tell, this player's a total noob." Silica was making a tiny little snowman, and she pressed down to make it stick. "I have a feeling they might have converted over from another game, though." Silica beamed at the completed sculpture; however, a bit of the snow crumbled off, to Silica's dismay, and as she hung her head Leafa giggled at her misfortune. "You should see their skill stats, they're through the roof! You know how on Floor 24 there's this tiny little island, just north of the main town? The one with the huge tree? Well, every day at 3:00 You-Know-Who shows up and waits under that tree for an hour, taking on any challenger one-on-one."

"Zekken first appeared in the public's eye by posting an 'Opponents wanted!' thread on the Alfheim forums," I said absently. Well, Asuna was going to get the information one way or another, so I might as well make sure it's correct. "The post basically said 'I'm here, I'm badass, fight me!' and offered a challenge to anybody willing to make good on the offer. You know how territorial those jerks are on the forums," I continued, "and so about thirty players went to go teach the newbie a lesson."

Liz shook her head. "Didn't go so well for 'em, though."

"What, they lost?"

I tuned out the rest of the conversation, trusting Liz to fill in Asuna adequately, and made my way down to the snow-covered field in front of the house. I bent down and scooped up a handful of snow into a ball shape before taking aim and letting fly with my impromptu projectile; my aim was pretty good, and I managed to catch Leafa in the shoulder, some of the snow splattering down her robe. As she shrieked and danced madly, trying to get the snow out, Silica laughed happily - or, at least, she did until Leafa glared at her and grabbed her own snowball, nailing the Cait Sith in the face. Giggling, I tossed a snowball at Silica, only for the girl to dodge and retaliate. I dodged her throw, only to end up getting hit with Leafa's lobbed snowball in the face. As I sputtered and wiped at my eyes, I heard the two giggling. "That's it," I grumbled. "No more nice Argo." With a grin, I pounced at them, snow in my hands, and with a swift movement dumped the handfuls of snow down the back of Silica's robe, followed immediately by dumping another handful down Leafa's dress. "Hah! Take that!"

"Eek!" Leafa screamed. "Argo! I'll get you for that!"

"Nyeh," I stuck my tongue out. "Gotta catch me first!" Cackling madly, I fled, giggling as the two of them gave chase with snow of their own. I dodged Silica's lunge and jumped up onto the railing, hiding behind Asuna's form. "Base!" The two grumbled, but they respected the rules of Asuna-tag and subsided.

Silica went back to grab her half-broken snowman, now decorated with some twigs that gave it hands and a lopsided smile. "I can't believe how good Zekken is," she said as she placed it on the railing. "Who thought a newbie to the game could fly as good as that?" she asked as she hoisted herself up, her wings keeping her afloat. "It took me at _least_ six months to learn how to fly and fight at the same time. I don't know how Kirito and Rythin did it... Every time I thought I had it, I'd forget and accidentally unsummon my wings. I'm still learning stuff!" I grinned; I'd seen some of her earlier attempts. She had just been hovering in place, thrilled by her success, and the second she celebrated her wings disappeared and she fell to the ground with a scream. Rythin had laughed hysterically, but I had just been worried she'd managed to hurt herself. It _was_ funny, so I laughed once she'd staggered to her feet and called out that she was okay.

"Did you fight Zekken, too?" Asuna asked the other Cait Sith.

"Not even," Silica laughed. "I'm no dummy. Watched one duel and I knew I wouldn't stand a chance. If you wanna know what it's like, why don't you ask Liz or Leafa? They took Zekken on yesterday," she grinned. "Fought and lost like a couple of champs!"

"Please don't remind me," Liz grumbled.

"Good learning experience, though," Leafa added.

Asuna giggled. As she laughed, I looked up to see snow beginning to fall softly again. "Ah! It's snowing..." I murmured.

"Yeah!" Silica breathed, staring at the sky and twirling. "Pretty, isn't it?"

"Well," Liz said, hopping off of the railing, "I don't know about you, but I feel like going back inside where it's warm. This being cold stuff is for the birds."

We followed our pink-haired friend inside and collapsed on the couch, reclaiming our seats from before. Before I could wriggle around and get too comfortable, though, Asuna stood up and fetched some more tea for everyone, placing the steaming drinks on the table. I grabbed mine and cradled it in my hands, enjoying the warmth from the cup. "I think it's about time we cut up the tart, don't you?" I asked to the others. Immediately, Silica nodded, and we all laughed. "You heard the girl, Asuna. Wow us with your cooking!" Smiling, Asuna obliged.

And we were suitably wowed. The fruit tart looked delicious, as expected, and I could barely restrain myself from just the one slice - any more and I'd ruin my dinner. I'm honestly glad that I can't gain weight from food that I eat in the game. "So anyway, back to Zekken," Asuna said as she sliced the tart and handed each of us our slice. "If this player's as strong as you say, it's only a matter of time until there are no more challengers to face."

"I don't know about that!" Silica exclaimed, grinning widely. "There's a pretty cool prize on the line, don't you know?"

"Really?" Asuna asked, handing a slice to Silica. "What is it, some kind of rare item or something?"

"Nope, it's nothing like that!" Silica said.

I grinned and accepted my slice of dessert before answering Asuna's question. "To the victor go the spoils, and this isn't any different. Whoever defeats Zekken receives an Original Sword Skill. So, pret~ty nice spoils."

"An Original Sword Skill?" she gasped. "Hm... Oh, what type? How many hits?"

I glanced past her at Silica to see the little kitten shoving the cake into her mouth, crumbs on her cheek, and I sighed before looking at Asuna. "The type is simple enough, a general skill for a one-handed sword. Useless to me or Ry, but invaluable to most of the players here. Anyway, the huge draw is its length." I paused dramatically.

"Get on with it," Liz grumbled. "Nobody's here to buy your showmanship, Argo."

"Pfft, no sense of style," I dismissed the girl. "But fine. The skill is -"

"It's an eleven-hit combo!" Silica interrupted, leaning in to raise a finger in Asuna's face. It wasn't helped by the fact that she was still clinging to her fork, but at least she'd swallowed first.

"No way, eleven?!" Asuna yelped.

For some unknown reason, Asuna and Silica sat frozen, blinking at each other, while Liz turned to Leafa. "Hey, the strongest Original Sword Skill being used right now, how many hits does it have?"

"That'd be the one General Eugene developed, the Volcanic Blazer," Leafa said promptly. "It's supposed to be an eight-hit combo. He hasn't passed it on to anyone else yet, and I doubt he ever will."

I leaned over, peering at Asuna and Silica, and they finally moved when Silica realized she still had cake to eat. "I guess that explains why so many players keep lining up to challenge Zekken," Asuna nodded. "Have any of you seen the Sword Skill in action?"

We all shook our heads. "Nh-nn," Liz noised. "I heard Zekken demo'ed it on the first day of the duels, though. Apparently it blew minds left and right. But since then, it hasn't been used in any of the fights."

"Imagine an old-school RPG," I said. "The average challenger is, oh, maybe level 30 or 40, while Zekken's the super-powerful bonus boss at the end of the extra dungeon." Asuna blinked at me, confused, and I sighed. "Right, you weren't a gamer girl. Um... The OSS hasn't been used because nobody's strong enough to make her use it. I think there were a few fights where it was close, but..." Rythin almost made her use it, I'm betting. If he'd just been a little bit calmer, he might have gotten her to use her trump card.

"Whoever does," Liz added, "has my respect."

"Leafa, what happened when you fought Zekken?" Asuna asked.

"Besides losing?" the blonde laughed. "It was going good until our HPs dropped below sixty percent. But... in the end, Zekken beat me without using anything but default skills."

"Really..." Asuna breathed. "Oh! I can't believe I almost forgot to ask! What's Zekken's race? And weapon of choice?"

"Zekken's an Imp," I told her, and I watched as her eyes went distant again. "And the weapon is a thin one-handed sword, about as narrow as your rapier. But, only just."

"And," Leafa added, "Zekken's super-fast, too. I couldn't even see the attacks coming at me. That's never happened to me before. I'm _still_ kinda shocked!"

"A speed type, huh?" Asuna mumbled. "If you had a hard time tracking Zekken, I doubt I'd be able to either... Ah!" She smiled. "I know two players who might, though. Those sleepyheads over there are the best fighters I've seen. What do you think? Would Kirito and Rythin go for that kind of challenge?" I felt my lips thin as my smile slipped momentarily. But as Asuna turned to look at the other girls, they all giggled knowingly. "What? What'd I say?"

Leafa laughed. "Nothing," she giggled. "It's just, Kazuto and Nick already tried it. And boy, did they crash and burn." The girls giggled, but I didn't join in; Ry started acting weird after he lost. I can't figure out why, exactly, but that was definitely the cause.

"I don't believe it," Asuna said immediately. "Were they holding back?"

"Well, I don't know if Rythin even _knows_ how to hold back, and I wasn't there to watch anyways," Liz hummed and crossed her arms.

"Ry wasn't using all of his little tricks he has," I shrugged. "I think I saw him cast one spell, and he never threw any of his daggers. I think he just wanted a fist-fight."

"Okay, so maybe he wasn't on top of his game," Liz admitted. "But for Kirito, it's kinda hard for me to say. From where I was standing, it looked like it. Yeah, but then I don't think I'm really the best person to judge when it comes to whether he was or wasn't. He didn't use that dual-wielding trick, that's for sure. So, I guess in a way he _wasn't_ going all out. But you know what?" she asked, looking up at us - no, not us, at the sleeping Kirito. "That kinda makes sense. I mean, it's a duel in a normal game. There's no reason for him to fight like his life depended on it anymore. The only time he'll take a fight seriously anymore is if a game stops being a game." Kinda like when he fought Heathcl- Kayaba, or when he was fighting Death Gun in GGO. "When the virtual world becomes the real world." She smiled fondly. "In a way, I hope he never goes full-tilt in a battle ever again. He's had enough of that. Heck, he gets into enough trouble on his own as it is, and that's not even adding in what he and Rythin can get up to when they put their minds to it!"

Asuna laughed softly. "Yeah, I guess you're right," she mumbled.

We were all silent as we thought about what Kirito had gone through over the time that we'd known him. "Well," Leafa said, the first to break the silence, "from where I was standing I got a different impression. I think Kazuto was definitely giving it his all. He seemed serious, determined, and focused. He put up a good fight." She glanced at me. "As for Nick..." I shook my head slightly, and her eyes hardened for an instant, the moment over so quickly I wondered if I'd imagined it. But she got the message; 'No talking about the specifics'. "...Well, it's Nick. He seemed a little angrier than usual, but I mean, that's pretty much par for the course. At one point during Kazuto's fight, though," she mused, tapping a slender finger on her chin, "something weird happened. Right before the duel was over, they were locking swords. And then, they both just stopped. It looked like Kazuto was saying something to Zekken. I couldn't hear what 'cause of all the cheering, and then all of a sudden they backed off from one another. Zekken charged him, but Kazuto couldn't dodge it, and... That's how the duel ended."

"During Ry's fight, he ended up saying something to Zekken too," I added. "Of course, this being Ry we're talking about, Zekken got super pissed off and ramped up the attacks. Ry drained all but like twenty-five, thirty percent of Zekken's health, but I think he got so caught up in the fight he wasn't paying any attention to his own health."

"Really..." Asuna said. "What were they talking about?"

Leafa and I both shook our heads in unison. "I wish I knew," she said. "I asked him, but Kazuto wouldn't tell me. Whatever it was, it must be pretty important to keep to himself."

"And Ry's been tight-lipped about it too," I pouted. "But I think that's more because he doesn't really know anything rather than not telling me. I mean, I haven't had a chance to grill him, but he would have told me if it was something too important."

"Interesting," Asuna whispered. "Alright then," she smiled, "I guess the only way to find out what they said is to ask Zekken myself."

"Hm," Liz leaned forward. "You think you're up to the challenge?"

"I'm not doing because I think I can win." Liz just laughed slightly. "Something about this Zekken person intrigues me, is all. I don't know why, but... I think this Zekken person's here for reasons other than dueling."

"Yep. That's what I think, too," Liz said. "But get ready, 'cause if you wanna find out you're gonna have to put up a fight as good as your boy Kirito. And then some."

Asuna nodded, clearly filled with determination. "Will you guys come cheer me on?" she asked, and we all nodded in agreement.

"You know we will!" Silica chirped. "It'll be awesome! We wouldn't miss it for anything!"

Asuna giggled. "Thanks, guys. I know Kirito will come if I ask him... So that just leaves Rythin."

"Don't worry about him not being there," I said with a sigh. "Every day since he fought Zekken, he's been going there and just watching. No fighting, no words, no nothing. He just sits there and stares at the fights for an hour until Zekken leaves." I sighed. I had no idea what was going through that brain of his, and I really wanted to know. "He won't even tell Din what he's looking for."

"Which character are you gonna duel with?" Liz asked. "You still have that Sylph account, don't'cha?"

"Hm..." Asuna hummed. "I guess I'll use this one. If Zekken's a speed type, it'll probably come down to who can hold out the longest, rather than DPS. Besides, Erika is a dagger user, and until I can beat Rythin with her I'm not really all that confident in my skills." She nodded with finality and looked at Leafa. "So, that's it. 3:00 on Floor 24, right?" Leafa nodded. "Then if we meet here tomorrow at 2:30, we can..." She looked up, then froze, her words trailing off. "Oh no!" she gasped, standing up. "It's already 6:00?! I'll be late for dinner!"

"I guess we might as well call it a day and log out too," Leafa sighed.

Liz waggled her eyebrows. "Rich girls and their problems, am I right?"

While Asuna picked up the plates and started carrying them into the adjacent kitchen, I turned to Silica and Leafa with a wide grin. "Alright, so you two want to mess with the guys to get back at them for making us sleepy?"

"For making _you_ sleepy?" Leafa corrected me with a grin. "Yeah, of course. What do you have in mind?"

I told them.

* * *

A giggle. "I can't believe they're still asleep!" Silica.

"I know!" L...leafa? "They didn't even feel a thing!" Why are they talking in somewhat hushed tones? Alright, until I figure out exactly what's going on here I'm not opening my eyes. Besides, the warm room is still warm and I'm comfortable. "They're amazing."

"Lemme see, lemme see!" A pause. "Aww! They look so adorable!" ...Crap. If Argo's cooing over how 'adorable' we look - wait, we? Given that I can hear Liz and Asuna talking over to the side... Well, that only leaves Kirito as the other person caught in whatever prank they played. "C'mon Ry, get up. I know you're awake." Poke, poke. She's poking me. Mrrgh.

Ignoring the prodding of my girlfriend, I tried to focus on Asuna and Liz's conversation. I couldn't hear over the sound of Leafa waking Kirito up, but I caught a few words here and there. 'After the fight' was a phrase I'd managed to snatch, as well as 'SAO'. Were they talking about Yuuki? Eventually, Argo's pokes started drifting up from my shoulder to my head, where she started poking at my ears, rubbing them in small circles. After feeling them twitch, I cracked an eye open and glared weakly. "Stoppit."

"Good evening, sleeping beauty," Argo purred. "You look radiant." Yep. She did something while we were asleep.

I sighed and sat up, rubbing at my eyes. "What did you do?"

Argo's grin widened. "Why do you think we did something?"

"Because I know you?" I asked dryly. "Now, are you going to give me a mirror or will I have to figure it out by staring deep into your eyes until I see my reflection in them?"

"I love it when you talk dirty," she purred. "Here." She passed me an ornate hand mirror and I took in my reflection. Hm. If I'm going to be entirely honest, I really shouldn't be surprised at the doodles on my face. An extravagant mustache and some very obvious rings around my eyes are more or less par for the course if I fall asleep around my friends; I wasn't the first person to fall victim to the marker among our group, and I knew I wouldn't be the last. What I wasn't expecting was the fact that the marker ink was bright pink. "What do you think?"

I looked up at them without reacting, though by their wide grins that was exactly what they expected. "I did tell you, Argo, pink _is_ my color. Please tell me you used blue or black for Kirito."

She grinned. "Of course. We have _taste_ ," she sniffed. "And it was black."

I nodded and glanced at my friend; he'd been subjected to the same treatment, though by the way he wasn't going through his menus trying to get rid of the ink I doubt he'd realized anything. "I'm impressed you managed to do all this without waking us," I observed off-handedly as I swiped open my own menu and started searching for the method to get rid of the drawings. "I suppose it could have been worse. I mean, you could have entertained another of your tastes, I suppose." Argo smirked knowingly, and I just rolled my eyes.

Silica giggled again as Kirito grumbled at his sister for waking him up so roughly - surprisingly, that was what he was most irritated about. Granted, it was simple enough to fix whatever they did, so I suppose his priorities weren't terribly skewed. With a shrug, I pushed myself to my feet and gently collected Din from where he was still asleep on Pina's wing, snuggled next to Yui. He stirred as I cupped him in my hands, and blinked up at me blearily. "Tired..." he grumbled, slowly opening his wings and flying over to curl up in Argo's hood. I just chuckled and shared a grin with her.

But while I was doing all that, my mind was fixated on one thing. Why were Asuna and Liz talking about Yuuki? Liz and Leafa had already tried and lost, but that would mean... Asuna's going to fight. Damn. I still haven't figured anything out about Yuuki! I still don't know how she could have so many hours logged in the virtual world, or what she meant when she said 'I wouldn't work'. Why had she gotten so infuriated when I questioned her?

Who was Yuuki? I had to know. I had to know how she had defeated me so I could remove my weakness. Who _are_ you?

* * *

 **Ooop. Rythin might be getting a bit obsessed there. It also doesn't help he's isolating himself to focus on Yuuki's mystery to the exclusion of all else – and while the others are noticing, they're not going to bother him when he's working on something. Still, while they're aware he's acting a little weird, they're just brushing it off as 'Rythin gonna Rythin' and letting him do his thing. (Maybe not such a good idea? Also it was so hard not to type Rything as a stupid joke. I still make that typo way too often.)**

 **Also yes, Argo was referring to those bosses in RPGs that have moves they only use when they get low on HP. She'd be the type of person to datamine the game just to know all the numbers, honestly. And then write a GameFAQ about it.**

 **Many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.**


	20. Zekken

**Chapter 20: Zekken**

* * *

 **January 6** **th** **, 2026**

"C'mon, Ry, don't go back to sleep," Argo scolded me gently. "It's after six, and I know you haven't eaten dinner yet."

Grumbling, I opened my eyes. "But I'm sleepy..."

"That's because you're lying down on the sofa with the fire to your back. You stood up solely to move over to the couch, of course you're going to feel sleepy."

I reached up and gently tugged at her hand. "Sleep with me... It's comfy and I don't wanna move..."

She smirked and pulled free. "Now, now, not while there are children present." Din was still curled up in her hood, but Yui had woken up and was talking to Kirito, who had also shifted to the seats the girls had just vacated. "Maybe later, mmkay?"

"I didn't mean it like that and you know it," I said sourly, giving her a flat stare. When her smirk didn't shift in the slightest - why does it remind me of a fox? - I sighed melodramatically and rolled until I flopped off of the couch, rolling to land on my feet and hands. The graceless landing jolted my system and I pushed myself to my feet. "I'm up, I'm up. Now, let's say our goodbyes and get going."

"Sounds like a plan." Argo shifted her hood. "Din, we're about to leave. Go say goodbye to Yui, okay?"

"'Kay," Din yawned, flying out of her hood and crossing over to where Yui was sitting on Kirito's lap.

I smiled at our son and then turned to the rest of the group. Kirito was sitting by himself, still with his ink mustache - I don't think he's realized it yet - but the girls were all standing around talking. Although I didn't really intend to do so, I listened in on their conversation; given that they were talking about it out loud and not actually whispering, though, I doubted it was all that private. "Right, so," Asuna said, staring at her screen, "Zekken shows up every day at 3:00 at this island on Floor 24?" Hmph. Zekken again. Why can't she just go away and make the mystery disappear?

"Mm-hm," Liz confirmed.

"And I'll see you guys there tomorrow at 2:30," Asuna continued. I glanced at Argo, and she just shrugged. The girls all agreed, so I guess it was 2:30. I'm pretty sure I was free then.

"I can't wait!" Silica exclaimed, beaming. "This'll be so much fun!" she squealed.

"Yeah it will!"

"Aw yeah! The Berserk Healer's gonna get unleashed!"

As Leafa and Liz chimed in with how much they were excited, I watched Asuna laugh. She was going to fight Zekken? For what reason? She was already strong, she was already stronger than me, so why would she need to fight Zekken? Hhh... Everything is Zekken's fault. All of it. Her eyes shifted to Kirito and I looked at my friend; he was watching Yui and Din with a fond smile. I grinned as Yui gave Din a big hug, ignoring his squawk of protest; kid was a lot like me when it came down to it. As my son flew back over to us, tugging at his shirt, Yui turned back to Kirito, telling him he had something on his face. Argo and I snickered at his reaction when she told him it was covered in ink, but when I glanced back at Asuna she wasn't smiling anymore. I wonder what's happening with them?

"See you guys tomorrow!" she said to the others, smiling. When I saw the smile, I narrowed my eyes but didn't say anything.

"See ya!" we all called back.

With a few button presses and a solemn look, Asuna logged out of the game. Once her avatar disappeared fully, I stretched, jerking as I felt my shoulder pop. "Mm," I moaned. "There we go." I yawned once more for good measure, then shook my head. "Alright, guys, we're off too. Later!"

"See you later, you two," Liz replied. Leafa and Kirito just waved.

"Thanks for the help on my homework!" Silica added. I just waved it away; it's not like the homework was terribly difficult, or difficult at all. It had just been a fun little distraction from sleeping.

Argo and I exited the log cabin and snapped open our matching golden wings; with a jump, we were in the air and soaring away. The skies were dark and overcast, snow falling gently, and as we covered the distance I stared down at the forest. Was I missing the forest for the trees? Was I not seeing the truth about Yuuki because I was looking too hard?

Or was I just being a pretentious prick, even in my own godsdamn thoughts? Mm, yeah, it's probably that last one.

I felt a cold hand slip into mine, and I glanced over, surprised to see that Argo had shifted to the side and taken my hand in hers. "Something wrong, Nick?" she asked quietly, and my eyes widened as she used my other name. I guess this was very important. "You've been distant for the past few days."

"Being sick will do that to a person, you know?" I grinned and gave her hand a comforting squeeze. "I'm fine, catling, I'm fine. And if I'm not, I'm sure you'll be the first person to know." Before me, even, since she knows me better than I know myself. "Just have a few things to think about."

"Like that paper we have to write that's due in three days?"

"Erk." Shit, I knew I was forgetting something. Ah, I should be able to bang it out in a few hours of concentrated effort. It's not like it was hard to write the papers or anything, just time-consuming. I mean, I had to figure out exactly what to bullshit, but the act of bullshitting itself wasn't difficult.

Argo sighed at my reaction. "Really, Ry? You had this long and you still haven't done it?" She shook her head. "Honestly. You really do need to work on your sense of priorities."

"You could always come over tomorrow and help me out..."

"I think if I did that, you'd just end up more distracted."

I grinned. "Fair enough. I'll finish it tonight, if that's acceptable?"

Argo snickered. "I'd have been happier if you'd already finished it, but I guess this is fine. I'll give you a call later, okay?"

"Yeah." Falling silent, we flew back to the edge of Aincrad and through the open walls; it was always a thrill to be able to leave the floating castle. I knew none of us would admit it, but there was always a small undercurrent of terror, of 'what if we can't leave this time?' whenever we entered the floating city. Eh, we never let it get to us - and it was always a rush when we left, so I'm not really complaining that much. Hand-in-hand, Argo and I flew through the sky, making our way back to our tiny little apartment. I liked it in the log cabin more, but I wasn't going to complain. We probably could have saved a trip if we used the Warp Gates, but at the same time it was nice to fly with Argo like this, to know that she was still there if I needed her. I still felt horrible that I had let her down like that, but she didn't seem to be holding a grudge.

Once we arrived back in our apartment, we logged off immediately, since it was starting to get a bit late. I opened my eyes in the real world and waited patiently for my mind to get used the gravity again, and once I had taken a few deep breaths I swung my legs off of the bed and stood up, stretching. My legs popped a few times and I threw a few kicks just to get my spine to pop and shift back into position. Since he was nearby I picked up my cat and held him in my arms as I went downstairs to start making my dinner. I did have to put him down while cooking, but he stuck around to watch me; my meal was pretty simple, just some rice and chili with two fried eggs on top, but it filled me up.

I brought it upstairs and sat down at my desk; I'd promised Kana that I'd write my paper, so that's what I had to do. As I mowed through my food, I read over the literature I actually had to write about. As expected, dry, boring, and thoroughly pedestrian. My fantasy and sci-fi books were better. I swear, most of our 'assignments' are just to perform some stupid psych evaluation. Even this one - I had to imagine and evaluate the reaction of the main character after he'd been taken captive and subjected to inhuman experiments. C'mon, be a little less subtle, I don't think we've been beaten over the head with your point yet. I frowned, trying to determine how I'd answer the prompt - the last one I'd written as though I was trying to forget all about Aincrad, while the one before I'd tried to phrase it like I wanted to go back. I think I'll go with 'accepting what happened and moving on with my life'. That one might actually be a challenge, especially since I had to use the main character's personality as a medium.

Hey, if they weren't going to take _me_ seriously there was no way I was going to extend _them_ that courtesy.

As I was halfway through the paper, my phone range, and I stared it with confusion while it vibrated. I shook my head after a few seconds and picked it up, staring at the caller ID. "Asuna?" I muttered. "Wonder what she wants?" Shrugging, I answered the phone. "Yo."

"Nick?" I blinked - I'd never expected to hear her voice that... broken. "Can... Can I talk to you?"

I glanced at my paper, the cursor lying at the end of a half-written sentence, and sighed. Kana would understand. "Sure thing, Asuna. What's wrong?"

I heard a sniff. "I-I can't talk about it over the phone," she said. "Can you meet me?"

"Wherever you need me to go." Asuna gave me a location and I nodded, typing it into my browser. It appeared to be a park, not too far from where I was. "I'll be there as soon as I can."

A watery, choked half-sob half-laugh. "Thank you, Nick." The line closed and I stared at my phone for a few seconds. Anything for you, Asuna. It's what I do for family.

When I arrived, Asuna was sitting on one of the swings, shivering. It was kinda cold, but she was wearing a coat; if I had to guess, the shivering was from her nerves or something like that. "Hey there, beautiful," I murmured, hugging her from behind. "What happened?"

"Nick, I..." She shivered, her voice breaking, and I tightened my hug. "Thanks for coming here..." she whispered.

I chuckled. "Anything you need, Asuna, you have but to ask. Though I must confess, I'm a little curious why I'm here instead of your boyfriend. Wouldn't Kazuto -"

"No!" she interrupted me. "I-I can't tell him about this." She twisted around in her seat and stared up at me. "You can't tell anyone else any of this either! Not even Kana!"

Asking me to keep a secret from Kana? "...I won't say a word," I said finally. If my sister asked me to keep something quiet, I would take it to my grave until she released the information. Silently, I hopped up on the swing, holding on to the chains to support myself, with my feet on the very edges of the seat. Gently, I began to swing back and forth, and Asuna let me.

For a while, all I heard was the quiet squeaking of the chains of the swing. Then, Asuna finally broke the silence. "I was late for dinner," she whispered. "We were supposed to eat at 6:00, but I got so wrapped up in what we were doing in Alfheim that I lost track of time and didn't log out until 6:30. At the moment, my father is working hard and my brother is in college, so it's just me and my mother. She ordered me to arrive five minutes early next time..."

"I'm _expected_ to just accept whatever she says, but I can't fight back, so I just said yes and tried so hard not to let her see what I was really feeling. After that, we ate dinner, but it was so awkward. I remember back when I was a kid, how the dinner table would be so lively and cheerful with the four of us there, chatting away... It's not like that now, though. Now, the only thing we hear is cutlery on the plate." That's... Wow. Um. I always listen to music when eating if possible, or the TV, or something. Not having any sounds... "Before we ate, my mother just stared at me until I complimented the meal. It's like she's forcing me to be her perfect daughter, the fine upstanding girl that is always polite. But I can't _do_ anything other than just do what she wants, so I said it looked de-delicious." I didn't say anything, letting her explain herself at her own pace.

After she'd gotten her voice under control again, she continued. "After we finished eating, Mother asked if I'd been using 'that thing' again. She never calls it by name, she never calls it the AmuSphere, it's always 'that thing'. I tried telling her that I'd been doing my homework, but she just yelled at me, saying that I needed to do my homework physically or I wouldn't learn anything. That doesn't even make sense! I can learn just as well by doing it in the game, or maybe even better since I can have more screens up at the same time. I just... I wish she'd stop hating everything that's related to the virtual world. When I told her it was more convenient to meet up in-game, since we all live so far away from each other, she just said it doesn't count as meeting up if we're doing it virtually." There was a brief pause while she took a few deep breaths. "Then she said I was just goofing off or playing around rather than actually doing my homework. Sure I was spending time with you and our friends, but I really was doing my homework. I've improved my grades consistently, and I always do well in tests. I wouldn't put my work off, you know that, right?" She peered up at me.

I grinned slightly and stared off into the night sky. It seemed like it was going to rain fairly soon. "I've never known you to put pleasure before duty. During all of Aincrad, I vaguely remember you taking all of three or four personal days off when you led the Knights of the Blood. And the rest were when Kaya-Heathcliff forced you away from your desk." It was almost draining, the way she was always work-work-work. Her mother really sounds like a... elder canidae female. If you're going to judge your daughter, know who she is first.

When I didn't say anything else, Asuna resumed her story. "She scolded me for 'playing around' and 'goofing off'." I frowned, careful not to let her see the expression. Apparently, anything that's not eating, sleeping, or studying constitutes one of those two forbidden activities, and I'm beginning to get my suspicions about sleeping. "She says that since I'm two years behind everyone else I don't have time to play around anymore and have to work harder to make up for lost time. And when I tried to tell her I was studying hard, when I told her about my grades for last semester, telling her I put them on her desk, she just brushed them off by saying that any grades I got at the school were suspect at best." Hm. Are they really beyond suspicion? It's not like they're subtle about trying to make sure we don't all go feral. "Because of that," she whispered, "she's hired a private tutor for the next trimester. One that comes over to the house, instead of being online. I don't even get a say in all of this!" she exploded suddenly. "And when I asked her that, she just pulled up a transfer exam study guide on her tablet instead of answering me."

My eyes widened. A transfer... study guide...? Asuna was going to... leave? ...No. I couldn't allow that. She couldn't be taken from me. She can't be. She _won't_ be. "A transfer?" I asked mildly, my knuckles white around the chains. This world takes and _takes_ , but it will _not_ take her.

"Apparently," Asuna whispered, her energy gone, "she knows someone on the board of directors there. She's arranged for an exam that would let me transfer into their senior class." Would that even work? I doubt the government would let their precious test subjects walk free without a hell of a fight. "Because the school's graduation system is based on the number of credits completed, I'd be forced to take enough classes to graduate at the end of the first trimester. I... I t-tried to tell her I liked my school and my teachers, that she could at least ask me for my opinion before making these decisions, but... she just insulted our school, said it wasn't a real school, just a glorified study hall. And then, all she does is place a hand on her cheek and sigh, like she's so disappointed with me. She's apparently done all this research on our school, and that lets her make all sorts of judgments against it. Saying that our school isn't a proper high school, that our curriculum is slapdash and our classes are jokes, that our teachers are sub-standard and fools with no real accreditation, all with that pitying, superior look on her face. It makes me sick... She called our school a place where the kids that spent the last two years killing each other were gathered in one place." Asuna sighed, hanging her head. "I lost my temper and snapped that I was one of those kids too." That sounds more like the Lightning Flash, the sub-commander of the Knights of the Blood, than Asuna Yuuki. She hasn't forgotten. "She didn't react in the slightest until I realized what I had just said." She seems like she doesn't like being that person anymore. Why? The Lightning Flash was strong.

"Then she tried to guilt me into accepting the transfer by bringing up that all my friends are getting into colleges right now. But that doesn't bother me. So what if it takes me a few extra years, I told her, it wouldn't make much of a difference. And what if I didn't want to go to college? I bet you can already guess that she called that suggestion ridiculous and impossible. Telling me I should be grateful that she and Father have spent so much on my future..." That's one of my points of contention with humanity. Why should _I_ be grateful that _you_ made a decision? I owe you nothing for your foolish good-will or well-meanings. I will feel grateful when I choose to feel so. "I am grateful for them, but I want to have a say in my own future."

"And what will you say, if they ask?" I asked her calmly, my eyes fixed on the night sky.

"...I don't know," Asuna sighed. "But even if I don't know now, I'm close to finding out. And staying at our school will help me figure out what I want to do." I didn't react. "But Mother said that staying at a place like that would only limit my options. She says this is all because she doesn't want me to make a mistake, she just wants me to have a good career and a good life. But she's the one limiting my options. Not me, not the school." There's something else behind the story here, but if she won't tell me I can't force her. She tensed up slightly, falling slightly, before all of her tension released. "She said horrible things about Kirito. She had the nerve to have him investigated, and she wants to control the rest of my life. She said... She said he's not _worthy_ of being my husband."

...Interesting. It usually takes me a lot longer to feel like murdering someone that isn't present. But, she's Asuna's mother, and despite her current agitated state my sister would be distraught if I killed a member of her family. So despite her insult, the woman lives. Asuna twisted to look up at me. "She had you investigated too! I think she had all of us investigated." Wonder what it turned up? My... issues aren't exactly a public record, and despite how easily Kikuoka got them my medical records are secure from anyone else. "After she admitted that, I just got up and walked out of the room. I have until next week to figure out what I'm going to do."

"I see," I said thoughtfully, my rage mostly under control - or enough so that it wouldn't appear in my voice. "And what _are_ you going to do?"

"I don't know," she admitted in a small voice. "I just don't know."

We sat there in silence for a while, the chain squeaking rhythmically. Before long, the looming clouds started approaching, blotting out the stars, and I slowly brought the swing to a halt. "Well, it's going to rain soon," I sighed as I hopped off the swing, trying not to jostle her. "C'mon. I'll walk you home, make sure you don't get in trouble."

She stood up, smoothing her skirt, and turned to follow me. "But... But I -"

"We can talk on the way." I gestured with an outstretched hand and Asuna nodded, beginning to walk. "I'd like to get you home before it starts pouring," I said. "So if we don't get to talk about whatever you needed to talk about, well... You could always invite me in."

"I think I'd get in trouble," Asuna sighed. "I'm already going to be in enough trouble for sneaking out already." She shook her head.

"Sorry," I shrugged. "You're gonna get in trouble because you needed to talk to me."

"Don't be sorry," Asuna said. "It's my fault."

We walked in silence for a while, before I glanced at her out of the corner of my eyes. "So why exactly did you need to talk with _me_? Shouldn't Kazuto be the one to comfort you?"

Asuna looked away. "...I can't... I can't tell him that I'm going to be transferring out..." Oh, so it's fine to tell _me_? Because I'm not as important as he is? "Because he thinks I'm stronger than he is, but I'm not. I'm weaker by a lot."

"Hm."

"Teach me how to be strong?"

My eyes widened and I glanced at her. What on Earth was she asking? "What are you - no. Regardless of your reasons, why ask me?"

Asuna turned to me, reaching out to catch my hand in both of hers. She was cold. "You know how to be strong! You _are_ strong! Please, tell me how I can become stronger! I -"

"Asuna." My voice was firm, and I didn't look at her, though I didn't pull my hand away. "Whatever made you think I'm strong, you're wrong. Horribly, terribly wrong. I'm not strong, not in the way you want."

"But -"

"My _strength_ ," I spat, "comes from being _wrong_. From being broken in ways that force the shards to prop each other up. From accepting my madness instead of being strong enough to fight it. I only appear strong because you have nothing to measure me against. If you did, you'd understand just how weak I really am." People, when put under enough pressure, inevitably crack. In Aincrad, we all cracked - some more than others, but we all cracked. It was a matter of life and death, and if the only way to survive was to lose a little bit of civility, well... It was an easy trade. The only difference was the extent of the damage, really - some people managed to retain the majority of their goodness, of their humanity, while others only held on to tattered shreds, barely managing to cloak themselves in the shroud. My so-called 'strength' only came from being one of the few people left with scraps. "I know why you wanted me to teach you, but... I can't. I can't teach you how to throw away your humanity. I'd never forgive myself for ruining you like that."

"Oh..." That quiet voice nearly broke my heart. "Sorry."

"A monster like me shouldn't be anywhere near a princess," I told her. "The princess needs her knight. Please, Asuna, talk to Kazuto about this."

She shook her head. "I can't, Nick. I want to walk alongside him to achieve his dream with him! But I can't do that if I'm always running to him when I need his help."

"You ran to me." She stiffened at my cold tone, and I relented. "Look, we'll figure it out. There's going to be a way through this, Asuna, and I have faith that you'll find it on your own without my help." The Lightning Flash Asuna, the fastest player in Aincrad - she'd never give up, no matter what. I knew that she'd find a way through it.

She didn't answer.

Before long we arrived at her house; I was going to just drop her off at the front and leave, but Asuna caught my arm as I turned to leave. "At least come inside to warm up," she insisted. "It's my fault you're out here, so let me do that, at least."

I narrowed my eyes. The longer I stayed at her place, the greater chance I'll be out in the rain. "I don't -"

"Asuna?" The cold voice reached me and I stiffened before trying to crush the murderous desire as fast as possible. "Get inside _now_."

Asuna didn't tell me not to kill her mother, so I'm assuming she missed that flash of hatred in my eyes. "Yes, ma'am," she called back. "Sorry again for dragging you out this late," she said to me.

"Mm. It's fine." I watched as she disappeared inside the house, stalking past her mother without waiting. When the door closed behind her, I sighed and blinked languidly. "And you wanted me to tell you how to be strong," I said sourly. "Like anyone thinks I could help them be strong."

By the time I got home, the clouds had blotted out what little starlight remained, and as I went upstairs the first drops of rain started pouring down. I probably could have handled the talk with Asuna a little bit better, but... she was asking the impossible. Well, not the impossible, but something I couldn't do to her. I couldn't... I couldn't turn her into a monster like me. It wouldn't be hard, really, I think, but Kazuto and all the rest of my family would be so hurt that I'd lose them forever.

Suddenly it hit me - oh gods Asuna is transferring. I collapsed on my bed and stared at the ceiling with unseeing eyes as my heart felt like it was collapsing in on itself. She's leaving. She's _leaving_ us and there's nothing I can do to stop her short of killing her mother. But that won't work because Asuna would be sad and I can't let Asuna be sad - but she'd be sad if she left so I can't let her _leave_ either. This is my fault. She's leaving because I got close to her. It's always my fault when they left so what do I do? Is that why she's fighting Yuuki tomorrow? So that she can find a way to be strong? Of course. That makes sense. So now I need to discover Yuuki's secret, because that's how she's so strong. It makes sense - if I can figure out her strength, I can give it to Asuna and she won't leave. "Din?" I called out, swinging my feet off my bed and taking a seat at my desk. "I need you."

"Yeah, Dad? What's up?"

I propped my phone up on my desk and glanced at him as I began scribbling information down on a sheet of paper - everything I remembered about Yuuki and our fight. "Research. Pull up any information regarding FullDive technology developed post start of Aincrad, excluding anything focused solely on the AmuSphere."

"On it." Din turned from the screen and I let it die. I had other things to worry about - namely, trying to fit Yuuki's information into the picture I had begun to frame. Start at the beginning...

She wasn't from Aincrad. She couldn't possibly be from Aincrad because if she was in Aincrad she would have had Dual Blades. Kazuto received Dual Blades, therefore his reaction speed was the fastest among all of the players trapped in Aincrad by Kayaba; Yuuki has faster reaction speeds than Kazuto. Exclusion confirmed. Now, her experience places her estimated playtime at approximately two years, plus minus two months. Her movements are too smooth, too used to the slightly-modified physics of the virtual world to be any less. What's more, the movements she exhibited in the fights that I witnessed, as well as the fight I participated in, are so smooth that she has to be playing almost constantly - living in the world similar to how the rest of us did, in other words. This already excludes the possibility of using an AmuSphere due to the forced restrictions and the auto-logout function. As the AmuSphere is the only - as far as I'm aware - publicly-produced VRMMO device, it therefore means that Yuuki is using a prototype of some sort. Once Din retrieves the data, I can thin it out from there. I wrote it down - 'Not using AmuSphere' marked as fact and 'Prototype?' marked as conjecture - and stared at my notes, trying to remember.

Other mysteries - Yuuki seemed to react poorly when I... Ah, that's right. When I asked her 'why she existed'. Furthermore, when I said she didn't belong in the world, she grew even more infuriated. It's possible that she's got some sort of issue that has ostracized her from the rest of the world. If she treats Alfheim as some sort of haven, that would explain why she reacted so extremely - in essence, I was taking away her final place of safety. Good to know. I scribbled that down, marked it as conjecture, and moved on to the next bit.

Why was she fighting? What was she searching for? I pulled up the thread and stared at the post where she made her challenge, but nothing special appeared. She hadn't posted in the thread after issuing the challenge, so all I had to go on was the wording of the challenge itself. She was seeking strong players, and offering a prize to any that defeated her. From what Kana had told me, that prize was the eleven-hit combo that she had created and shown off exactly once. The prize was, I assumed, simply a lure to bait the players into challenging her despite her strength, so I could disregard that completely. Why would she want to fight a strong player? The obvious answer is because she wants to fight strong players and test her strength, and I wrote that down. A memory flashed in my mind - Yuuki sighing and saying that I wouldn't work - and I paused, my finger tapping the pad of paper. Now, why had I been disqualified? Because I realized that she had far too much experience. Evidently, realizing that would lead to discovering something she needed to keep private - which was exactly what I was intending to do, so I guess she had a point there, loath as I was to admit it. What was I disqualified from? That I wasn't sure about, so I wrote it down as conjecture that she was searching for a strong player for an unknown reason.

"Search complete, Dad," Din reported, and I blinked.

"Excellent. Send me the data files if you would please, and then give me a quick rundown while they're transferring. Limit everything to just functional prototypes, please."

He paused for a moment, hands tapping at something invisible to me, and then nodded as a screen appeared on my computer asking to accept a remote file download. I kicked it off and sat back, staring at my notes. "Due to the exclusion of the AmuSphere from the search parameters, the majority of the files revolve around conceptual technologies derived from the NerveGear." As expected. "They can be separated into several broad categories."

Din continued giving me a fairly brief overview of what he'd found; most of them revolved around the various uses of the FullDive technology. I listened to Din speak as he rattled off names and uses easily; as I listened, I tried to compare the prototype of whatever FullDive rig he was talking about to the notes I'd written down. File after file, nothing fit, and I was starting to become discouraged. Had I made a logical error somewhere? Had I overlooked a critical clue to the puzzle - the corner piece that would tie the frame together and allow me to start figuring out the rest of the image? I frowned and shook my head. No, I hadn't made a mistake, everything followed from the last in a neat train of logic.

As Din was telling me about the next prototype, I stared at the notes on the page. Slowly, I grinned before starting to laugh victoriously. Things were so _obvious_ once the image formed - they just slotted right into place, the puzzle pieces rotating and clicking to form the picture I wanted to see. One by one, they formed the image, each piece cascading into three others. "Is something wrong?" Din asked me, looking at me in what I assumed to be concern.

"I'm fine," I chuckled. "Just... I understand it now. Why she wanted to keep her means a secret." Still, this doesn't explain any of the other mysteries - just how she was able to get enough playtime to match and surpass the kids from Aincrad. "Okay, Din, find every instance in use at the moment - I'm pretty sure this is the one. While you're at it, see if you can find anything on Yuuki herself - posts in threads, anything. The name of her guild would be phenomenal."

"Yes, Dad."

I turned to my notes and grinned. Yes, one question is answered, giving me a lead toward a second, but it still didn't explain why she was looking for a strong player. Hopefully Din could come through on that one. "Well, Miss Absolute Sword," I murmured, tapping my pencil against the paper, "we're starting to see who exactly you are. Now, to figure out your strength... and how I can make it mine."

Din tapped on the screen and I looked over. "Dad? Sorry, but Yuuki's basically a ghost. No posts, no nothing. There were a few hits on real-life people with that name, but I'm assuming you didn't want those."

"Right," I sighed. "I'm pretty sure only Asuna would be stupid enough to use her real name, though it seems to come up more often than you'd expect." I hummed in thought. "Well, no matter. I have half of the picture. Did you find the other bit?" Din gave me an address, and I raised an eyebrow. "Just the one?"

"It's the only one cleared to use the prototype right now," he shrugged. "At least, the only one in public record. Did you want me to start breaking firewalls?"

"Can you do that without leaving any trace that you've been in their systems in the slightest?" He gave the question some thought, then shook his head. "Then no. Your safety is above all else, kid. Remember, it's only wrong if you get caught, but taking risks is just as bad because they leave you exposed. Too many risks and you end up getting blindsided by someone or something you didn't see coming."

"Yes, Dad."

I grinned. "Cheer up, I'm not mad. Just be sure to always stay safe, kid, that's all I ask." I shook my head. "Anyway, I think that's all I can do for now without going to the place in person." And that would be a bad idea for several reasons. I glanced at the clock and sighed. "Wow, time flies when I'm plotting and scheming. Typical secrecy parameters, as usual. No exceptions this time." That meant 'keep it secret from everyone else until I told him it was okay to give it up'. "I'm gonna crash, kid. Night."

Din waved and glanced to the side - oh, Yui must be there. "Night, Dad."

"Good night, Uncle Nick!" Yui piped up, and I chuckled.

"Hey, Yui, no eavesdropping," I pretended to scold her. The screen split in half and she appeared, seeming a little contrite. "It's fine, Yui, it was a joke."

She peered up at me. "You're not upset?"

I rolled my eyes. "How could I ever be upset at my niece? Go on, you two go play or break some firewalls or whatever you two do when us meatbags are asleep." They both giggled and the screen went dark. Pushing my chair back, I stared up at the ceiling and sighed, a long drawn-out exhalation. Eventually, I stretched and stood up. I can deal with this tomorrow after Asuna fights Yuuki.

* * *

 **January 7** **th** **, 2026**

I logged in and yawned luxuriously, stretching widely. My entire body shook in a shiver that traveled from my toes to the tips of my ears, and I grinned, my tongue flicking out from between my pointed eyeteeth. I cracked my neck - this was it. Today is the day I'd corner Yuuki and figure out just what she was fighting for, and how she was so strong. And then I'd take her strength and make it my own to overcome my weakness so I would never fall victim to it ever again. How else do you hide a crack in a rock? You cover it with another layer of stone - this one firmer and more durable.

"Ready to get going?" I turned with a small jump to see Argo reclining on the couch, Din resting lightly on her stomach.

"Been waiting long?" I asked as I tugged on my gloves and equipment, automatically running through my blade check. It was like checking to make sure I had my wallet and phone with me, if my wallet and phone were several dozen throwing knives. Y'know, more or less the same thing.

Argo sat up, accidentally dislodging Din; he flew around and landed on her head with a light thump. "Nah, I just got in a few minutes ago. Remember, the challenge is at 3:00, but we're meeting up a half-hour early. That really doesn't leave us with much time if we want to make it in time to tease Kirito and Asuna. Because you know as well as I do that they're acting all lovey-dovey with each other."

"Oh no," I muttered in a deadpan, "we can't miss that. How would I survive." Argo snickered and we shared a quick grin.

Before long we were on the 24th Floor and flying through the air - the other girls were already heading toward the island, so Argo and I figured we could catch up to them on the way. While we were flying, I noticed Argo sneaking glances at me out of the corner of my eye, but I didn't look over. It would be awkward to catch her staring, so all I had to do was wait until she figured out exactly what she was going to say to me. "Are you ready to tell me what you found out?" she asked finally, but when I looked over she was staring straight ahead.

I watched her for a little bit longer before sighing. "Did Asuna tell you?"

"Nn-nn," she shook her head. "You really think I wouldn't notice that you've been obsessed with figuring something out lately? And that when you logged in today you were acting different?"

"Different how?"

"I don't know," Argo sighed. "Smugger, maybe? A little more anticipation? It's hard to pin down exactly. All I can tell is you've finally figured something out that's been bothering you for a bit now." I didn't reply. "It's got something to do with Zekken, doesn't it? The way you were acting after you lost -"

I frowned. "Whatever I discovered is mine to know, Argo. I can't tell you this. Not yet, not until I'm certain of everything."

"At least take a break and relax. You're worrying me, Ry." Argo sighed. "Even if you have to keep this secret for now, I hope you'll tell me sooner or later."

"It'll come out before long," I sighed. "Maybe three to five months at best." Argo raised an eyebrow, but I didn't say anything further and she accepted my silence. "Don't worry, I'll tell you everything eventually, I promise."

Argo didn't reply for a while. "...If you say so," she said slowly. Of course I'd tell her - I'd promised, hadn't I? No secrets between me and her. That was part of our agreement of honesty. It's why I knew she was still a little in love with Kirito. For a second, she looked like she wanted to say something else, but then she closed her mouth and fell silent.

I sighed quietly. Why was she mad at me? What had I done wrong? Fucked if I know. I'm already disconnected from humanity; and if regular men couldn't understand women, I had no chance in any of the hells of understanding them. I was lucky Argo was so upfront about what she wanted or needed. Relationships were haaaarrrrrrd.

"There they are," Argo called out, and I blinked, realizing that our friends minus Kirito and Asuna were all flying ahead of us.

"Hey, slowpokes!" Liz called back, waving wildly. "You're almost late!"

"Liz, how 'bout you shut your stupid, ugly face before you swallow something prettier, like a bug?" I replied as we joined her and the others.

She snickered. "Wow, that was weak. Did you just wake up or something?" I made a rude gesture in her general direction and she giggled.

"So where are the two lovebirds?" Argo asked.

Leafa swiped open her map. "I think they're a few islands away. We should probably hurry - Kazuto's probably lost track of time again."

"Honestly," Silica huffed. I glanced over to see Pina clinging to her head for dear life, and I grinned. "Those two are always sneaking around to get alone time. It's not fair!"

"Now, now," Argo snickered, "you can't be saying things like that. Why, anyone listening would think that you're jealous of Asuna!" The girls glared at her, and she just casually reached over to grab my hand, twining her fingers with my own before giving the others a beatific smile. Honestly, I have no idea how she has so many of those smiles that she can just whip out on command. I'm limited to 'normal', 'smirk', and 'grin', and that's about it. "I can't _imagine_ what that would feel like." Nor can I. But I think that's for somewhat... different reasons. Namely because I'm a dude and Kirito's a dude. Therefore, I can't be jealous. Makes sense to me.

"Oh hey, I think they're over there," I said, pointing to an island with a faint pair of figures, one black and one blue. As we approached and they grew clearer, I sighed. Really, Kirito? Honestly, let five minutes go by without touching her. At least he's only patting her head. Still, this does give me some fun ideas to mess with him.

The girls landed gracefully and started stalking toward Kirito and Asuna, while Argo and I watched with interest. Liz coughed meaningfully, her hands on her hips, and glared at the couple, Leafa and Silica flanking her. "Every time we turn around you're always pawin' at each other," she huffed. Kirito dropped his hand almost guiltily, and Liz leaned in close to them. "Sorry to interrupt your little love fest," she grumbled, "but there's a duel that's supposed to be happening?"

"Yeah!" Leafa and Silica chorused, leaning in to glare at them. Man, from Kirito's perspective that would be pretty intimidating.

He just laughed uneasily. "Ah... Yeah, I know," Asuna said defensively. "I was on my way!"

The two stood up and brushed themselves off. I grinned sharply. "C'mon now, Kirito, not even going to give her a kiss for good luck? Poor, poor Asuna."

"How sad," Argo chimed in. "I feel so sorry for Asuna, never sure if her boyfriend really has her back. Without a good-luck kiss, how will she know for certain?"

"You're not gonna let this go, are you," he sighed, and Argo and I shook our heads in unison with matching smirks. "Hah..." The other girls all glared at him, and he glanced at me out of the corner of his eyes. I just watched with a grin - now this was entertainment. "Fine..." Ignoring the angry huffs of Leafa, Silica, and Liz, he leaned over and awkwardly gave Asuna a kiss on the cheek. Argo and I cooed in unison before glancing at each other and snickering, much to the anger of the girls and Kirito's and Asuna's embarrassment. Yep, this is fun. "Let's just go."

I glanced up in the sky to see players streaming in, flying in tight little clumps of three to five a piece. Most solo players had given up trying at this point, so the only ones left were the people that were trying to impress their friends - the more foolish they. Still, it did mean that there were plenty of witnesses, which ruled out just approaching Yuuki personally and confronting her about her secrets. A shame, really, since it would save so much time. We flew in with the rest of the crowd, and I grimaced; because we'd gotten here late, Yuuki was already fighting someone. I'd missed my opportunity to observe from the beginning. We all touched down lightly, listening to the cheering and whistling of the other players as they watched the match. A wide assortment, as it was every day; I could see a member from every race bar none, though there weren't too many Undines for whatever reason.

A few metallic crashes rang out followed swiftly by a panicked cry, and I looked up at the tree branches to see a spear-wielding Salamander plummet to the ground. Yep, another one bites the dust - literally in his case. That face-first landing must have hurt; the crash was so intense that it kicked up a cloud of dust and wind that blew toward us. I was forced to raise my arm and turn my head, my eyes squinted, or lose my sight, and I wasn't the only one that needed to protect their vision. I saw Asuna and the others trying to block the sudden dust storm. When it finally cleared away, the Salamander waved his hands in the air. "Yield!" he shouted. "I yield! Quit! Resign!" The bright white text appeared over his head, acknowledging the forfeit, and I snorted; pathetic. At least have the balls to carry through and lose.

Everyone started celebrating. "That's sixty-seven wins in a row!" I heard one shout.

"Zekken's undefeated!" another called out amidst the roar of the crowd. I snarled silently. When had she become popular? Everyone smiling so happily at her victory... Damn. Even the girls and Kirito looked impressed.

From above, Yuuki floated gracefully down, twirling in midair before spinning and landing lightly on one foot, the showoff. Silently, she brought a hand up to her chest and gave a polite little bow; once the crowd went wild again, she spun around and flashed the now-expected V for victory sign, winking. I heard a soft gasp beside me and I turned to see Asuna staring at Yuuki with disbelief on her face; it was like her mental construct of Yuuki just crumbled to pieces. Wait, did they not tell her Zekken was a girl? ...Heh. So that's what it looked like on the outside. Neat. Still staring, Asuna raised her elbow and nudged Liz. "'Scuse me, Liz?" she asked.

"What?"

Asuna calmly placed a hand on Liz's shoulder - before whirling to stare at her, violently shaking the pink-haired blacksmith. "You didn't say Zekken's a girl!" she screamed. Well, I'd like to think I handled my case of mistaken-gender better; after all, when I was told Death Gun was a guy I just swore.

Liz grinned up at Asuna sheepishly. "I didn't? I coulda sworn I did," she said, looking to the side.

"You didn't!" Suddenly she gasped before whirling to pierce Kirito with eyes like daggers. "And you!" she shouted; Kirito flinched. "I have a feeling I know why you lost now," she said dangerously. " _Stare..._ " Huh. So when fire blazes in her eyes it's blue. That's kinda impressive, actually. Thank the gods I'm not on the receiving end of that _stare_ or I'm pretty sure I'd be whimpering right now.

Kirito's a stronger man than I; he was only sweating and hurrying to assure her that Yuuki being a female wasn't the reason he lost in the slightest. "No, you're wrong! I didn't go easy on her because she's a girl, I was going full-out! I swear!" Then he paused, his eyes closed. "Halfway through our duel, anyway." Cautiously, he cracked an eye open to peer at her.

"Whatever," Asuna snapped, turning away from him in a huff. Liz giggled.

"So, uh," Yuuki called out, "is there anyone else out there that wants to take me on today?" She was peering around the crowd, probably trying to see if there were any strong-looking players waiting to challenge her. When her eyes fell on me, she froze for a fraction of a second before continuing to turn. If I were anyone else, I would have missed the pause entirely - but I'd been watching her ever since I lost, and I knew that she hated me.

"You're up!" Liz crowed, nudging Asuna with her elbow. "Go on, get 'er!"

"Wait..." Asuna pleaded, trying to turn away from Liz's insistent nudges. "I gotta psyche myself up first..."

Liz grinned. "Oh please! Once you cross swords with her, believe me, you'll get psyched up. Go on..." She reared back and slapped Asuna on the back, shoving the Undine forward. "Get in there!"

Wobbling, Asuna hopped forward to keep her balance. When she finally straightened up, able to stand without the risk of falling over, she was in the center of the ring, staring straight at Yuuki. They stared at each other for a few seconds in silence before Yuuki grinned. "Hey, what's up?" she asked. "You next?"

Silently, I hopped up onto the raised tree root that was nearby; it afforded me a slightly better viewpoint, and I had sat there the last two days. Asuna straightened up. "Oh, uh, hi. I guess I am?"

Yuuki snapped her fingers. "Awesome!" She waved her hand for Asuna to come closer, and I watched as my sister took a deep breath to center herself. Good, Asuna, good. You're strong, but Yuuki is stronger - you'll need to be on the top of your game for this one.

She strode forward until she was only ten paces away from Yuuki. "So, uh," Asuna asked, "does anything go in this duel?"

"Of course!" was Yuuki's instant reply. To be fair to her, much as I didn't want to be, she'd had plenty of practice with this spiel. "You can use magic, or items, whatever you want. I'm only gonna use my sword, though," she added, placing a hand on the hilt of her blade. Asuna's eyes narrowed, and she placed a hand on the hilt of her rapier. "Oh, wait!" Yuuki said. "Almost forgot. You wanna fight on the ground, or in the air?"

"Is either okay?" Yuuki just nodded happily, grinning all the while. "Let's duel on the ground then," Asuna decided.

"You got it! Jumping's allowed, but no using your wings, okay?" As she said that, the black wings that marked Yuuki as an Imp faded from sight. With a few smooth gestures, she offered a duel to Asuna; when the screen appeared in front of her, Asuna studied it for a second, hesitating. After a brief glance at Yuuki, Asuna's eyes firmed and she accepted the duel.

The twin health bars appeared over their heads, the sixty second timer clicking down, and the two drew their swords and took their battle stances. Asuna stood rigidly, her sword pointing straight up, and I noted that with an absent frown. What we talked about last night, messing with her form? Or was she really thinking that was the best she could do... No matter, as it was out of my hands now. Yuuki stood confidently, her sword angled in front of her - it was almost like Kirito's fighting style, except she arrogantly held on to her belt with her other hand. She was looking _down_ on her opponents, wasn't she? I realized I was grimacing and forced myself to relax by taking a deep breath and exhaling slowly. No good would come of being so wound up that I couldn't see the fight for all the red in my vision. Control, Rythin, control.

As the timer ticked down, I watched quietly as Asuna, her eyes locked on Yuuki, took her own deep breath and let it out. Was she prepared? I wonder. The timer buzzed, and Asuna leapt forward immediately, charging toward Yuuki - and I had my answer. No. She wasn't. Asuna's thrusts, though powerful, were lacking in something. There wasn't any drive behind them; Yuuki blocked them effortlessly with one hand, not even bothering to put forth the effort to counter her and instead just parrying or back flipping out of the way. With a shout, Asuna drove the point of her rapier toward Yuuki's chest, accurately seeking the heart, but Yuuki's black blade swept up from below and knocked the point away with ease. Zekken wasn't even trying; she was just standing there with her smug smile, blocking all of Asuna's weak attacks with ease. And then suddenly Zekken charged, closing the distance between her and Asuna in a heartbeat - the first aggressive move she'd made all combat - and Asuna gasped in panic, stumbling back. She slipped in the mud and Yuuki swung her sword with all her might, knocking Asuna's rapier out of the way and leaving a scratch across Asuna's chest with a spray of orange sparks.

Asuna had managed to backflip at the last second, however, so the attack hadn't bisected her like I had expected; still, the girls and Kirito were shocked. I felt something touch my tail and I glanced over to the side to see Argo sitting beside me, casually watching the fight while her tail rested on mine. I smiled faintly and looked back over at the field. Asuna continued her flip and jumped a few paces back - enough that she could breathe - and Yuuki just stood there, grinning that self-satisfied grin of hers. Asuna was panting heavily, but somehow she still returned that smile. You're a better person than I am, Asuna. It was polite of Yuuki to sit back and let Asuna catch her breath, however. Asuna wiped a bit of sweat off of her brow and smiled grimly, eyes locked on Yuuki.

Suddenly, she gasped slightly and her gaze shifted past Yuuki to our friends; Liz and Silica, watching concerned, and Kirito with his arms folded. Something in her changed then, because her eyes hardened and she took a long, slow breath, closing her eyes. Wordlessly, she took a step forward and slowly raised her sword back into position - this time, it was pointed directly at Yuuki. She opened her eyes and they were the eyes of the Lightning Flash; I grinned as a shiver went down my spine. That wonderful feeling was back… Yuuki noticed the same thing too, because her smile disappeared and she tensed.

For a long moment, neither of them moved. Everything and everyone was silent.

Then in an instant they both charged each other. Asuna snarled and swung her rapier, meeting Yuuki's attack; the blades clashed and Yuuki lost the challenge, her sword getting knocked away. A loud sound, the clash of two blades, rang out, and Argo and I winced simultaneously as the shriek reached our ears. As I recovered from the sudden pain, I watched as Yuuki landed and started fighting for real, striking at Asuna with full speed and power. Their fight wasn't a graceful dance like ours had been; instead, Yuuki and Asuna were hopping from place to place, attacking and disengaging in the same blow. Each of Asuna's thrusts were met by Yuuki's swings, and vice versa.

Yuuki shouted and spun, her sword glowing a brilliant purple; she swung the blade and it crashed into Asuna's rapier, held in a guard position. Asuna didn't budge, but an explosion of purple smoke rippled out behind her. With Yuuki frozen, Asuna countered, spinning with the force of Yuuki's attack and thrusting with a Sword Skill of her own. A blue explosion rippled out, and I caught Kirito smiling as he watched his girlfriend fight at her fullest.

Asuna burst from the smoke and thrust at Yuuki, who dodged the attack and spun with a slash of her own. The blow was blocked by Asuna's rapier again, and I raised an eyebrow as the two fighters started a running battle, moving down the field side by side while attacking each other. Asuna stabbed several times, one of the blows managing to slip past Yuuki's guard and slit open her cheek, but in response the Imp slashed the Undine twice, once on the leg and once on the shoulder. Asuna's eyes narrowed with concentration as she charged Yuuki, slipping past the Imp's thrusts and blocking Yuuki's overhead slash with her rapier.

Suddenly, Yuuki's eyes widened as she grunted; Asuna's fist slammed into her stomach. Looks like she's copied a few of my tricks. As Yuuki shifted backwards, time seemed to slow again as Asuna drew back her rapier and it began glowing with a blue light. If Yuuki was a normal player...

But she wasn't. Asuna thrust forward with her Sword Skill, and at the last second Yuuki's eyes snapped open. Four metallic clashes rang out as smoke filled the air, and I narrowed my eyes. Quadruple Pain, the four-hit rapier skill, had been countered neatly. Impressive, almost. As the smoke cleared, I saw Asuna's eyes wide with shock as Yuuki's sword continued to glow a bright purple; with a shout, Yuuki stabbed Asuna five times from the right shoulder to the left hip. I felt my jaw drop; she'd countered Quadruple Pain with just regular blocks and then continued into another five hits, and her sword was still glowing... This had to be... "The Original Sword Skill..." I breathed. My first time seeing it.

Asuna snarled something and lunged forward, her rapier glowing; the two Sword Skills clashed. Asuna got stabbed five more times from the left shoulder to the right hip, and as the smoke cleared I realized that Yuuki's sword was still embedded in Asuna as the Undine struck with her Linear. Light shone from Yuuki's chest as she was knocked back by the skill, the Imp being obscured by the massive cloud of smoke.

But Asuna was in midair, reeling from the ten consecutive attacks, and so had no way of dodging Yuuki's final blow. As the smoke whipped away, Yuuki's eyes were hard as she dashed forward, her sword thrusting toward Asuna's chest and the center of the X.

A massive explosion shook the island, the wind from the impact forcing the others to shield their eyes. I winced and dug my Dragontalons into the bark of the root I was sitting on, and Argo yelped as her hood was blown back. When the smoke cleared, we were in for a bigger surprise; Asuna was standing there, frozen still with only a sliver of her HP remaining. Zekken had frozen her sword right at the center of Asuna's stomach; a centimeter more would have impaled Asuna. The duel was unquestionably over.

Yuuki and Asuna both lowered their swords, and Yuuki stumbled slightly before approaching Asuna, placing a hand on her shoulder, and smiling. "That was an awesome fight, girl!" she said. "You're definitely the one."

"Ah..." Asuna stammered, staring at Yuuki. "What?" Yuuki beamed up at her, giggling. "A-aren't we going to finish the duel?"

"I've totally seen enough to know you've got what it takes," Yuuki told her. "But if you want, we can keep goin'." Asuna shifted back a step and shook her head. Yuuki grinned that gigantic smile of hers again and I narrowed my eyes. Asuna is the one? The one for what? "I've been looking for someone who can go the distance. At last, I found ya," she said, sheathing her sword. What was she planning?

She offered her hand to Asuna to shake as a token of her appreciation, and Asuna sheathed her rapier before accepting the hand.

Then Yuuki summoned her wings and took off, dragging Asuna along behind her.

...what. ... _What?!_ She's taking her away! Why? Why is she taking... Why is... Asuna! _Asuna!_ I gritted my teeth and dug my claws into the bark, forcing my anger back down to rest. I needed to act quickly, before they could get out of my range.

I spat a few words of magic and snapped my fingers surreptitiously; the spell was cast before the words even appeared in front of me. This particular spell, Peeping, was perfect for being able to watch what happened from afar - and I'd practiced it until I could cast the spell in an instant. A screen appeared in front of me; it was from the viewpoint of a small, nearly translucent cat that was 'attached' to Asuna, more or less. Unless she searched for it, though, she wouldn't know it was there, and I was the only one that could see and hear the information it was feeding me.

"You okay, Ry?"

I blinked, ignoring the second screen since it was just Yuuki and Asuna flying away, and took a deep breath before looking at Argo and giving her a grin that hopefully didn't shake too much. "Yeah," I told her. "Just a little surprised at what just happened, is all."

"Asuna!" Liz shouted up into the sky. "Where you going?"

"Asuna!" Silica and Leafa shouted.

Yuuki and Asuna had disappeared past our line of sight, so it was time for me to move. I stood up, ignoring Argo's concerned look, and summoned my wings, taking off into the sky towards the town. I'd know exactly what was going on, gods damn it. I _needed_ to know.

"Um..." Asuna gasped. Yuuki paused and turned to face Asuna. Her eyes seemed to be focused and determined.

"I picked ya! Because you're the only one that can help us!"

Bingo.

* * *

 **Hooray, Asuna! She is the victor! Also, she's terribly upset by all of the drama going on with her mother, and Nick is being supremely unhelpful. To be fair, though, he's not** _ **wrong**_ **when he says he can't teach her how to be strong. Given that he thinks his strength is the strength of apathy…**

 **Before anyone says that Nick's overreacting about this, since this is his last year of high school anyway and he'll have to leave his family regardless of whether Asuna transfers or not – yes, yes he is. But he's not in a good headspace and doesn't see it that way. Mental breaks are terrifying that way; it SEEMS rational and logical to him, but to us we can tell he's going batshit nuts.**

 **(Also Nick's parental advice re: hacking is bad advice. Don't listen to Nick, he's a bad influence on kids.)**

 **Many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.**


	21. The Sleeping Knights

**Chapter 21: The Sleeping Knights**

* * *

 **January 7** **th** **, 2026**

The Peeping spell was active and I was paying attention to Asuna and Yuuki's conversation while simultaneously controlling my focus to keep my wings active and fly toward the town and keep up a conversation with Argo.

Go go gadget multitasking. Bleh, if only that actually worked.

"I picked ya! Because you're the only one that can help us!" Yuuki exclaimed.

Beside me, Argo glanced at me. "Are you sure you're doing okay?" she asked. "You've been quiet."

"Help you? With what?" Asuna asked.

I shrugged helplessly. "I don't know what to tell you, Argo. That fight was a... surprise." Which it was; I hadn't expected Asuna to be selected by Yuuki for whatever she needed.

"I'll explain when we get there! C'mon!" Yuuki grabbed Asuna and resumed pulling her along.

"H-hey! Wait a second!" Asuna's protests went unheard, and I watched the camera resume following the two at a distance. Good thing it was automatic unless I controlled it directly.

"I mean, if there's anything wrong, you can tell me," Argo said quietly. "I'll listen without judging or saying a word. Even if you shout and scream, I won't care. I didn't before."

I smiled at her, tuning out the sound of the rushing wind coming through on my Peeping screen. "I believe you," I told her. "I just don't think that I need to get off my chest right now. That's good, right?"

Argo looked at me for a while, something I couldn't read in her eyes, before smiling and reaching out, taking my hand in hers. "Yeah. It's great."

When we landed in the main settlement of the 24th Floor, I stumbled on the landing, disoriented by the second screen showing Alfheim passing underneath them. "Whoops," I mumbled, slightly embarrassed. "I've suddenly forgotten how walking works." Argo snickered, and squeezed my hand gently.

We walked through the city like that, slowly making our way to the Warp Gate; at the same time, Yuuki and Asuna were landing in another city I didn't recognize off-hand and making their way to what looked like an inn. It didn't help that both cities were full of people, and I had my second screen in front of me, leaving me about two heartbeats to dodge out of the way of anyone that walked through my screen unknowingly. I rammed into a few people accidentally when I didn't get out of the way in time, and bumped into Argo when a player walked into the almost invisible familiar. Fortunately, it wouldn't disappear when that happened, or I'd be all kinds of screwed. "Ry, you really should pay attention," Argo sighed when I bumped into her for the third time. "Did the fight really distract you that much? Or are you thinking about Yuuki and Asuna?"

"Guilty," I said with a dry chuckle. "The way she just took off... it's a little, um..."

"Worrying?" Argo supplied for me, and I nodded. Yuuki and Asuna had just arrived at the door to their inn room. "Just hold on tight, then." Gratefully I squeezed her hand; instead of squeezing back, she shifted even closer and hugged my arm to her chest. "There, this is better," she purred. I could feel the vibrations of her voice, even though we were in the game, and I smiled, feeling my cheeks heat up slightly. "Now all you have to do is let me steer you and you can think to your heart's content."

Would she be saying the same thing if she really knew what I was doing? ...Probably, come to think of it. Hopefully, at any rate. "Is it any wonder I love you?" I asked her, resting my cheek on her head and absently trying to nibble on one of her ears, getting a squeak from her when I gently closed my mouth over it.

"Not in public," she scolded me gently, prodding my ribs with a finger.

"Yeah, yeah..."

"One 'yeah' will do."

I just chuckled quietly and let her steer us toward the gate, turning my full attention toward the feed from my familiar. By the looks of things, it'd managed to slip past the notice of Asuna and Yuuki and was currently... sitting on top of a lamp to hide, if my guess was right. In any case, it was in an inn common room, looking over a table filled with five people other than Asuna and Yuuki. I needed to get a good look at them, and my little camera obliged, turning its head and sweeping from left to right. I was fortunate in that their appearances were more or less indicative of their races; Undine, either Gnome or Pooka, Salamander, either Sylph or Pooka, and Spriggan. The big guy I was leaning towards Gnome and the other one Sylph - he just had that pretty-boy look about him, despite the glasses - and I focused the camera back on the group as a whole. "Hey guys!" Yuuki chirped, pointing at Asuna with one hand. They'd been in the middle of dinner, but _naturally_ Yuuki's wants and needs took precedence over everything. "This is Miss Asuna. Asuna, this is my guild, the Sleeping Knights!"

If I hadn't been in public, I'd have laughed out loud in joy. As it was, I couldn't help a small smirk; she was giving me all the information I could have wanted and she had no idea.

The Salamander boy stood up and grinned. "My name's Jun!" he said. "What's up? How's it goin'?" Cheerful, exuberant, and friendly. Probably a little inexperienced, though. Granted, I was judging based off of appearance and sound alone, since I wasn't present, but he had that... child-like innocence? Can I use that as a descriptor? Eh, at least it worked. Armor was middle-class, vendor stuff mostly, so he was a new player too.

"H-h-hi... Miss Asuna..." Glasses boy stammered. Definitely young; Asuna was on the lower end of beautiful in this game - according to Argo, at least - if only because she used her real appearance and not one that was hand-crafted to be gorgeous. Still, my girlfriend had said that the too-beautiful ones looked fake and unearthly, so I'm going to side with Asuna's appearance on this one. Anyway, got lost in my tangent - the kid was obviously struck dumb by how pretty Asuna was, so he wasn't too used to women yet. Young and new to the game. That was the third newbie in a row, and I decided to save time and just assumed all of the Sleeping Knights were new to the game. "I-I'm Talken. It's n-nice to meet y-ah!"

The Spriggan had slapped him on the back. "You really need to get a grip on those nerves, Tal," she said, resting her cheek in one hand while grinning at him. "Seriously. Every time you meet a girl, you turn into a blubbering mess." While Talken looked away, blushing, the Spriggan beamed at Asuna. "Anyway, my name's Nori. Glad to meetcha."

"My name is Siune," the Undine said with a soft smile. "It's wonderful to meet you. And thank you so much for coming today!"

"It's a pleasure to meet you," the Gnome said. "My name's Tecchi." Low voice, past puberty... Young to old we had Talken and Jun, then Nori, then those two. Not entirely sure where Yuuki landed on the scale; judging by appearance, with Jun and Talken, but her manner put her closer to Nori. Maybe younger than Asuna?

"We're here, Ry," Argo murmured into my ear, and I jumped slightly; I'd been paying so much attention to the Sleeping Knights that I'd completely lost track of where we were. Yuuki was taking Asuna's hands in hers and introducing herself energetically, so this was as good a time as any to warp.

"Yggdrasil City," I called out, and let the light envelop me.

The first thing that I heard when my senses came back was Yuuki saying, "Miss Asuna? Don't laugh, but see... We want to be the _only_ guild to beat the boss on this floor. And we want you to help us!"

"What." I... That came from so far out of left field that it wrapped the fucking globe and came from right field instead. I had to react verbally – fortunately, Argo hadn't appeared yet.

Asuna took a few seconds, staring at Yuuki, before she reacted as well. "Huh?" In response, Yuuki just flashed her megawatt smile again, and I shook my head. For fuck's sake...

"Back with the land of the living?"

"Wasn't aware I left," I said to Argo with a smile. "In all seriousness, I'm back with you, catling." I noticed Din watching me from his perch on Argo's shoulder, his eyes occasionally darting to the screen that was now beside me, off away where it wouldn't catch my interest. Shit, I hadn't thought about that; he was plugged into the system so he'd know what I was doing. Still, he hadn't said anything, which was good. "Ready to go back to the apartment? I was thinking of just resting for a while."

"Sounds like a plan. I have some notes to write down and then a client to meet."

As we flew, I thought about what the fuck Yuuki had just dropped on Asuna, and therefore me by proxy. She wanted to kill the Floor boss - 27, I'm assuming, since 26 was killed yesterday or around that time - by herself. Well, her party. A party of seven, if we included Asuna. She was searching for strong players so that her guild could solo a boss? That was dumb on so many levels I didn't even know where to begin. Even the weakest boss of Aincrad, good ol' Illfang, had been massively inflated to keep it a challenge, and he'd taken almost a full raid party. Even still, the best fighters, banding together, needed at least forty people to kill a boss. I'd know; I was one of the forty-something that killed the Crawlerpede, and we only did so well because I had prior knowledge of some of its abilities and attack patterns. ...Not that I _used_ them, mind, but it was still there. To try to kill the boss, with just seven people? That was tantamount to suicide.

Which, given Yuuki's situation, kinda made sense, in a sick, twisted, delightful way.

But regardless, the usual strike force was seven parties of eight or nine players a piece. The more-or-less dedicated merc party, for raids that had one, usually didn't fill up all the way, but that was the exception that proved the rule. Was it arrogance, that drove the leader of the guild to try this exceptionally stupid stunt? Or was it something else? Despite how I viewed her, I was fully aware that Yuuki was a competent fighter, and that the Sleeping Knights seemed to respect her, at least. They didn't sigh or shake their heads when she arrived with Asuna in tow, so they knew of and were on board with her plan. Probably didn't know she kidnapped Asuna, but then again nobody's perfect. Whatever her plan was, it was one shared by her entire guild. What would even happen if they succeeded, anyway? The Monument of Swordsmen would only record the name of the party leader, leaving six blank spaces.

 _Click_. But... what if they weren't in a party? There _was_ no party leader to be recorded? The system would... My eyes widened. The system would treat each player like the leader of their own party and record the name of every fighter, so long as there were only seven or fewer people.

Wow. That...

That really was _exceptionally_ stupid.

Why wouldn't they just organize a group and have each member of the Sleeping Knights lead the party? Same result, far easier time of it. Hell, I had contacts in most of the races' upper echelon of fighters, and whatever I didn't have Argo could get me; if Yuuki had just… talked to me instead of going all crazy mad, we could have had this wrapped up two days ago. Gods damn.

We reached our apartment without any mishaps or midair collisions, and I shook my head before collapsing on the couch and staring at the ceiling. Or, at least, that's what it looked like to Argo; I was watching the screen carefully, not missing a single riveting moment of the Sleeping Knights and Asuna chatting idly while my sister waited for her drink to be delivered. _Riveting_. "I'll be in the work room if you need me, Ry," Argo called out, and I called back acknowledgment. As I watched, the waitress delivered Asuna's drink - some glass full of red liquid and ice - and the guild started actually talking. Asuna started out by telling them exactly what a bad idea it was, hitting most of the points I'd already thought of. Things like most raids being over fifty players, things like that.

When Asuna called their ambition 'unrealistic' - polite as always. I seem to remember her being a bit more... abrasive in Aincrad, though, especially when acting as second-in-command of the KoB - Yuuki rubbed the back of her head and grinned sheepishly. "Yeah, it kinda is, isn't it? We tried taking on the bosses on Floors 25 and 26 the same way." I slammed the heel of my palm against my forehead.

"Huh?" Asuna yelped. "Ju-just you six?!"

"Yup!" For fuck's sake. "And if you ask me, we put up a pretty good fight, too. But both times, this huge guild swooped in and beat 'em before we could figure out our next move."

"Hey, Argo?"

"What's up?"

"Do you remember who beat the bosses of the last two floors? The big guild."

Argo emerged from the other room and leaned on the back of the couch, thinking. "I'm pretty sure it was... Crimson Blitz. Y'know, that guild that always steals the kills unless the boss is killed on the first attempt?"

I glanced at her, frowning. "How do they do that, anyway?"

I heard more voices coming from the video feed and I split my attention, half of it on Argo as she lectured me on the Crimson Blitz' method of killstealing and half of it on what was happening with Asuna. She'd asked why they even wanted to do something like that, and Siune was saying, "It goes back to when we met in another game's net community. We hit it off right away, and we've been friends ever since! But... we only have until next spring to go on quests together." ...Bwuh? That made no -

Argo snapped her fingers. "Hey, Ry, you listening?"

I glanced at her. "Of course, Argo. They wait for another group to try to fight the boss, then raid the boss once the other group wipes and then beat it." It's actually kinda clever in a way.

"Since our time's limited, and we wanted to make the most of it," Siune was saying. "You see, come spring we'll all be busy with other things. So we decided, before we disbanded the guild we had to do something so amazing, so unbelievable that we'd remember it forever." The other Knights nodded.

"So that's why you want to do this boss raid," Asuna murmured. I guess it makes sense why they didn't just lead parties for their names on the Monument of Swordsmen; they really wanted it to be just their guild to kill it.

"Exactly!" Siune exclaimed.

"Anyway," Argo told me, "I don't know exactly how they do it, but I'm pretty sure with the way they snatched the boss kill from under the nose of another guild on 25 and 26 it's got something to do with invisibility or concealment spells. Anyway, I've gotta head out to meet my client. Later!"

"Later."

"I know it sounds vague, and maybe even a little vain," Siune said, "but we'd really like to get our names up on that wall no matter what." I think I was on... three floors? Maybe more? I know Kirito was on the list for Floor 17, and Asuna for Floor 18. "But... Getting them on there is the hard part."

A light pressure landing on my head alerted me to Din's presence. "'Sup, kid?" I asked, still watching as Siune talked about how they had to do it just by themselves. "I'd have thought you were going with Argo."

"No," he said, "watching this is more enjoyable."

I chuckled. "Don't tell your mom, okay?"

"Why not?"

I shrugged. "She doesn't like the Peeping spell for some reason. She knows I can cast it, but I make it a point not to let her know I'm using it."

"Okay." Din shifted to my chest and got comfortable, watching the screen with me. "I won't tell her."

"That's the catch," Siune was saying, Yuuki staring at her drink silently. "If we want all the names of the Sleeping Knights up on that wall, _we_ have to beat the boss. Together, just us. No one else." She smiled. "So, we talked it over and came up with a plan. The Monument of Swordsmen can record up to seven names max. Therefore, we decided to find someone just as strong, or stronger, than our most powerful player, Yuuki!" The Imp in question looked embarrassed at the praise, staring at her drink with slightly red cheeks before rubbing her head sheepishly. "And hope whoever we found accepted our invitation."

"I get it," Asuna said to Yuuki. "That's why you were dueling!"

"Well?" Siune asked. "What do you think about joining us?" Asuna was a member of Trinity, so I suppose she'd take the job. Come to think of it, though, I don't really remember her taking a solo job before... Whenever she fought as part of Trinity, it was always when we were contracted as a group as a whole. "We can't pay you very much, but you're welcome to what we have."

"Um..." Asuna mumbled, bowing her head. A trade screen appeared in front of her. "Oh, no, that's okay!" she said, hastily pressing the cancel button. "Boss raids cost a fortune as it is, so you should use your money for that!" I'm not sure I'm _thrilled_ she's not accepting payment... Still, of all of us only Sinon and I are really mercs. Kirito and Asuna just didn't have their hearts in it. "I'd feel horrible taking your money, really!" The rest of the Sleeping Knights looked so excited by her refusal of the money. "I-if you want, you can just give me whatever the boss drops, and I'll be fine!" ...Okay, that's acceptable payment.

"Really?!" Siune gasped, her eyes shining. "Then, you'll join our party?!" They all looked so happy that Asuna was joining their party, everyone laughing and smiling. It was too happy; in Aincrad, they wouldn't have survived the first boss fight, let alone make it to Floor 27. Asuna didn't reply right away, instead staring at her drink. I wondered what she was thinking, and then sighed. There was no way for me to know, after all, not unless she told me herself. Why was she even considering this, anyway? It was stupid, it was suicidal, and it was pointless. The odds of victory were small at best. All it would be doing is taking up time she could - should - be spending with us.

She looked up at Yuuki, then nodded decisively. "Okay. Let's see how far we can go." ...Fuck! As the Sleeping Knights celebrated their new temporary seventh party member, I gritted my teeth and growled under my breath. "In the end, it's not about winning or losing, it's about having fu-"

"Thanks a bunch, Miss Asuna!" Yuuki exclaimed, lunging from her seat to grab Asuna's hands in hers.

Asuna laughed slightly uneasily. "Please, I'd prefer it if you just called me Asuna."

Yuuki smiled. "Then you can call me Yuuki!"

After that, the group separated into small little pods; Nori and Talken were chatting about something quietly, while Jun was enjoying his meal. Siune and Tecchi had some papers out and were going over them - finances, maybe? - while Yuuki just sipped at her drink. "That reminds me, Miss Yuuki - sorry. Yuuki. The duel was all about testing players, right?"

I grimaced. That stupid... "Yep, pretty much!" Yuuki chirped, smiling. In the background, Jun moved over to lay his hand on Talken's shoulder and said something that made the boy blush slightly and Nori to start laughing uproariously.

"Then... you must have gone up against a ton of strong fighters before I showed up," Asuna said. "Do you remember fighting a Spriggan dressed in black?" You mean half of the Spriggan population, Asuna? "He would have been using a one-handed sword." ...You mean a quarter of the Spriggan population, Asuna?

"Huh..." Yuuki hummed, looking up at the ceiling thoughtfully. I'm pretty sure she stared straight at my Peeping familiar, but the translucent golden kitty was hiding above a lamp, so it blended in, hopefully. "You know what, I do! Man, he was pretty tough," she laughed.

Asuna blinked. "Then, why didn't you ask him to help you out?"

Yuuki frowned slightly before grinning at Asuna. "I don't know, he just wasn't right.

"Well, why not?"

"He found out my secret." In the background, Jun locked his arms around Talken's neck and Nori laughed gleefully. "I can't have that. It's why him and that asshole Cait Sith wouldn't work." Pfft. Like I would have worked with someone so self-centered anyway.

Eventually, the party wound down and they grouped together outside of the inn. "Okay," Asuna said. "So for tomorrow, how about we meet back here at one?"

"You got it!" Yuuki, Jun, and Nori chorused at the same time, the first two throwing their fists up in the air. I didn't _really_ need to be listening in on this, but it was habit by this point to have as much information as possible.

Asuna smiled. "And let's have fun."

"Right!" the Sleeping Knights shouted.

Asuna was walking the streets with her menu open, chatting with Liz; I didn't read in on the conversation, because those were private and I wasn't supposed to look at those, according to Argo. My Peeping camera hovered in the air around rooftop level; enough for me to see Asuna without irritating anyone else. The little thing could be super useful at times. While she walked, making her way toward whatever destination she had in mind - I was assuming the Warp Gate - I thought about what she'd been saying. The important thing was to have fun? I... I guess, maybe. But people can only have fun when they're winning, right? That's why losing made people hate playing the game. It's just another one of those sayings that people say but don't really mean, perhaps. Like saying that everyone was worth something - that one was obviously false. After all, what worth was -

"The fuck?" I swore when Asuna suddenly disappeared, my feed going black and the window closing. She'd just... vanished. Like her internet connection had cut off. But that'd never happened before. It was like she'd... been disconnected from the game or something like that. Abruptly and without warning. I glanced at the time - it was 6:35. "Oh... That bitch," I growled. Her mother, most likely. Forcefully disconnecting Asuna because she was late for dinner. Who the hell does that? Still, I'll give Asuna a call later and make sure she's doing okay. I could be wrong, after all, and if something happened I'd feel bad. Ah well, I should probably be getting some food myself. The last time I'd eaten was at lunch, and that was... a while ago. Yeah, I was starting to get a little hungry, I guess. I had to keep reminding myself that this wasn't Aincrad and that I couldn't actually ignore my body like I had back then.

I tapped Din lightly. "Hey, kid, I'm gonna be logging out, okay? Feel free to come with me or stick around for Argo." He nodded and lifted off of my chest.

"Bye, Dad."

"Later, kid." I swiped open my menu and swiftly logged out, waiting patiently for my body to recognize the real world's input instead of the virtual. That was the time where I always felt a small amount of fear and curiosity - what if I couldn't log out? What if something went wrong? What if, just like in Aincrad, I was locked in Alfheim and couldn't log out? Would I... care? Would I miss the real world, or would I gladly accept Alfheim as my new home?

And then every time I opened my eyes again, I was staring at the ceiling in my room, seeing through the filter of my AmuSphere. My cat would be sleeping at the side, my light may or may not be on, and the question would be pushed off until the next time I logged out.

I still didn't have an answer.

Dinner was quick and easy, just some rice and chili, but it was hot and filling. I wonder, Asuna said that her mother warned her about being late again. What would happen now that she was late again? Would she lose permission to access Alfheim, or would she be able to escape with just a warning? If Asuna disappeared, I would have to take action. I'm not sure what I would be forced to do just yet, but I'd do something. I'd get her back.

After I finished my meal, I grabbed my phone and laid on my bed. I hit Asuna's speed dial and listened to it ring for a while as I rested, staring up at the ceiling. When it finally connected, I raised an eyebrow; that was a lot longer than I had expected. Was she okay? "H-hey, Nick," Asuna said.

"You doing okay?" I asked her. "When Yuuki took off like that and dragged you along, none of us knew what to think."

"Yeah," she said, laughing shakily. "Liz was saying the same thing. It's fine, though. She just wanted me to help her with something." There was silence where I didn't press her for an explanation and she didn't offer one. "Oh... it's snowing."

I raised an eyebrow. "You sound a little, um... a little like you were crying. Is something wrong?"

"N-no, I'm fine."

I sighed. "Really? Somehow, I doubt that. Asuna, you sound like you're crying. Does this have something to do with why you got disconnected?"

"...Yeah..." I heard her sigh. "I was late for dinner again, and my mom just unplugged the AmuSphere with no warning."

I shook my head. "She didn't just shake you or something?"

Asuna sighed again. "No. She said that... oh, it's nothing. Don't worry about it." You say that, and yet still I'm going to worry. "Don't tell Kirito, okay?"

"There a reason you don't want me telling Kazuto something's going on?"

"I... I can't explain," she said. "It's... It's okay. I'll be okay."

I shrugged. "So long as you're sure," I told her.

"Hey, Nick?"

"Mm?"

"How did you know I was disconnected?" she asked me suddenly, curiosity in her voice.

"Peeping spell," I told her easily. "I linked it to you right as Yuuki was dragging you away and -"

"You were spying on me?!" Asuna demanded, interrupting me halfway through my explanation. "What the _hell_ , Nick? What is wrong with you? How would you even think I'd be okay with that? Do you even realize how big an invasion of my privacy that is?" I was speechless; I couldn't reply. What... I'd done something wrong? How was... What? "Of course you don't, you're not _normal_ ," she spat. "If it's not one thing, it's another."

"Asuna, I -"

"Don't, Nick. Just don't." I heard an angry sigh over the line. "I'm mad right now, and you're not going to be able to talk your way out of this one. Good night."

"Wait, wait, Asuna -!" The line went dead and I stared at my phone in shock for a few seconds before gripping it tightly as I tried to master the urge to just chuck it at the wall. What the hell? I... Damn it, Asuna, I was _worried_ about you! And you lash out at me for that? Fuck. Fuck!

Eventually, though, my anger drained and I drew my legs up to my chest and wrapped my arms around them. Asuna was mad at me, Kana was disappointed in me, this was just a fucking _fantastic_ week. Gods damn it, all I needed was for Kazuto and Sugu to decide they hated me too and that would be the full fucking hat trick. And I couldn't even ask Kana what I did wrong, since it involved using the Peeping spell, and she'd just say it was my own damn fault for using the spell in the first place. Ugh...

Fuck it, I'm going to plan how to ruin someone's day. If I'm having a shitty day, so is everyone else. I swung my feet off of my bed, calm and controlled again, and moved to sit down at my desk. This shouldn't be too hard to handle, and it'll give me something to do other than sit around and mope. Let's see... Crimson Blitz, was it? You're all about to have a very, very bad day...

* * *

I was working on my homework – unlike Nick, that lazy man – when my phone rang. I glanced at it and picked up immediately. "Asuna, what's up?" I asked, pushing back and stretching with a satisfied sigh. "You usually don't call this late."

"I-I don't know what I'm doing anymore," she said, and my eyes widened. She was crying? Uh-oh. That's bad.

"Well, you know where I live, so you'd better be over here in ten minutes or I'm sending out a search party," I told her firmly, getting a small weak chuckle out of her. "At least you're laughing. See you in ten minutes."

"…Thank you, Kana." The line went dead, and I stared at my phone for a long while. Asuna _never_ sounded like that… I wonder what happened? And… why call me? Why not call Kazuto, or Nick, or the other girls? I was more than aware the two of us weren't as close as we could be; we had our friends in common, but the bond between us was weaker than the others.

I frowned. Let's think this through – if she's calling me, arguably the person she is connected to the least, then that means it involves a subject that she can't exactly talk about with the others. Naturally, I'd assume it was girl talk – except she'd also been unable to speak about it with Keiko or Rika. Whatever the topic of our emergency discussion was going to be, it had to be extremely personal and at the same time something that deeply affected all of us. Something about Alfheim Online or the school, then. That was the only thing it could be, really, if she couldn't speak to Kazuto about it.

I shook my head and went downstairs to start preparing some tea. If she was outside in this weather, she'd be cold when she got here and hot tea would be just the thing to warm her up.

When Asuna rang the doorbell, I was waiting in the living room to keep an eye on the kettle. "I'll get it!" I called out, swiftly padding across the cold floor and opening the door. "Hey, Asuna. Get in before we lose the heat."

Shivering slightly, Asuna stepped inside and I closed the door behind her, just fast enough to avoid letting more than just a swirl of cold air in. "Thank you, Kana," she mumbled, taking her coat off. "What... what do you want me to do with my coat?"

"Give it here," I told her, "and sit down. You look like you've been crying."

Asuna smiled slightly and handed me her winter coat; while I hung it up, she slipped her shoes off and took a seat on the couch, drawing her legs up to her chest. Hm… Whatever was bothering her was serious, wasn't it? I smiled her before heading into the kitchen and pouring two cups of tea; I handed one to her, and she accepted it with a quiet 'thank you'. I sat down facing her, sipping at my tea silently. This was the time for her to speak first; all I could do is offer my support silently until she asked for my help. A long time passed, the only sound the distant noises of my parents in the other rooms – I'd already asked them not to disturb us no matter what happened, so I didn't have to worry about that - and still Asuna didn't say a word. Still, I didn't say a word, only quietly sipping at my tea when I felt the urge to do so. When there were only a few sips left, Asuna looked at me. "I'm going to be transferred out of school in two weeks."

Hm. I might need more tea.

Instead, I sat my cup down with a small clink and looked at her levelly. "Would you mind explaining?" I said quietly. "If you don't want to, you don't have to. But I think it'll let you feel better if you talk about it." I smiled. "Don't worry, I won't say a word to anyone. It's all confidential."

"N-no," Asuna murmured, "I can tell you." Haltingly, she told me everything – all about how her mother never listened to her, and how she'd told Asuna that the transfer would go through no matter what. I listened without saying a word, trying not to let my rising horror show. If she'd told any of this to Nick… That explained a lot, especially why he was distracted earlier. I know there's something wrong, but... he won't talk to me. If I push he'll talk, but I don't want to push. "…I just don't know what to do, Kana," Asuna finished, looking at me. "I can't tell Kirito about this… and Nick is…" She just shook her head. Judging by that, she told Nick and he's done something idiotic. How marvelous.

There's something wrong with him, I can tell. When we were flying back earlier, he was distracted, and I took advantage of that fact to study his face. There was something in his eyes earlier… I think it has something to do with Yuuki. He was staring at her intently while she was fighting Asuna, and I _know_ it's not because he's interested in her. Whatever it is, it's bothering him and it's something he should talk about.

Well, he'll tell me if he needs me. Right now, Asuna needs me more. "I think," I told her carefully, "that right now you're thinking in circles, Asuna. One thought leads to another leads to a third and leads to the first… All you're doing is digging yourself further and further into confusion." Asuna blinked at me, confused, and I smiled. "Please, sweetheart, get a good night's rest and in the morning, you might see something you missed. I'm sure you just need someone to give you a good push to snap you out of this, and then everything will be okay."

Asuna smiled at me. "I… I will, Kana. Thank you."

She stood up, and I grinned at her. "By the way, if you don't want to go home tonight, you're more than welcome to stay the night. Just give your mother a call and I'm sure it'll be okay." I shrugged with a smile. "And if she asks, let's just say we're studying… hm, let's say chemistry."

"Chemistry?"

My grin widened. "Yeah, chemistry! We're gonna study the process by which stomach acid breaks down ice cream!"

"Wait, what?!"

"Oh, come on," I laughed. "It's double fudge, chocolate is nature's anti-depressant, and you sound like you could use some dessert to take your mind off things. Besides, it's not like it'll go straight to your hips or anything."

"Kana!" Despite her tone, she was smiling. Good, at least that's looking up.

* * *

 **January 8** **th** **, 2026**

"C'mon, Ry, you're running out of time," Argo said impatiently, tapping her foot. "You've got until what, 1:30, 2:00 before you have to be at the boss room?"

I shrugged. "A little earlier than that, actually, given that I have a few things to set up first."

She shrugged. "Sure, whatever, 1:15 then. It's almost 1:00 right now, and you still have to get through the floor to get where it'll actually be. Given travel distances are faster now that we're able to fly, that's about ten minutes travel time just to get to the boss door."

"Trust me, I know."

"So why are you taking so long? I'm supposed to be the one that takes forever getting changed, not you."

I rolled my eyes. "Just making sure I'm stocked up on everything I might need," I told her. "You know accessing my menu once I'm out there will be risky, and I won't be able to change my equipment. Besides, I need to make sure this plan is foolproof. They can't suspect a thing until it's too late."

With a yawn, Din appeared. "What are you two arguing about?" he asked after he finished stretching in midair.

Argo grinned at me. "Rythin's being a girl about his equipment."

"Just because I let you do that _one_ time," I grumbled. "See if I let it happen again."

"You know you loved it."

…I liked her fussing over me, at any rate. "Bite me. Anyway, equipment is looking good, timeframe is looking good, plan is looking like it's got enough redundancies to bounce back from anything that's not total failure." All that's left is to hope that my acting skills are up to par. I raised my hand and chanted a long string of spell words, closing my eyes to better remember the pattern. It helped that Argo murmured the words quietly when I slowed down; without her help, I probably would have fucked it up. When I finished, I snapped, and the words disappeared before a panel popped up in front of me. One for each race, they'd let me access all of the saved character data I could use the Disguise Race spell for. To use this particular spell I needed to use a base character model captured from whoever was nearby that was then modified slightly with random aesthetic tweaks, but hopefully for later levels I could customize the disguise personally. As it was, though, I needed to decide what race I was going to appear as. I still didn't have a character for Imp, Pooka, Gnome, or Leprechaun, so they were greyed out; and because of who was involved with this, I couldn't choose Spriggan, Salamander, or Undine. That left me with just Sylph and Cait Sith, both of which were... unpleasant choices. "Rrrgh... I don't want to do this."

Argo grinned at me. "It's your own damn fault for not reading how the spell worked properly."

"I thought it would at least... Oh, whatever." I slammed my palm on the Sylph panel and glowered at it as my body shimmered and changed shape. "This is the worst. I'm regretting this decision immediately."

"You know," Argo said, "Green and blonde is a good look for you. You should go out like this more often. You look cute!"

Cute, she says. I glared at her. "There is nothing in this world that could make me go out in public as a Sylph woman." Not my fault! Leafa was the one that taught me the spell, so I copied her! And we didn't have any other Sylph friends. At least the mass and height stayed the same, so I didn't have her... bountiful tracks of land - thank gods for small mercies - though they were by no means subtle, much to my dismay.

"If you go out right now, without any more bitching," Argo said calmly, "nobody will ever know about your Sylph disguise. And, as a bonus, I'll even help you get a better one. If you don't... well, some bits of information are cheaper than others."

I pointed at her immediately. "Except that. Might as well get going, then. Later, beautiful, love you."

Argo tilted her head thoughtfully. "Y'know, it's really weird to hear that from a big-breasted Sylph girl."

Snarling curses under my breath, I shot out of the window and sped through the air as fast as possible, thanking the programmers that the spell itself handled all the animations for the illusion and that it was basically just a shell around me. I would not have been happy if I'd needed to deal with a shifted center of gravity too. The Disguise Race spell was pretty thorough, though; it even took into account what weapon I had equipped and made a similar copy appear somewhere on the new character's body. I glanced down and over my chest - a _really_ weird feeling - and patted the dagger on my hip. It rattled like it was supposed to, even though I only felt the fabric of my pants. Very thorough, at least. And my voice had a modulator attached to it, so I even sounded like a female - which was also a really weird feeling. Still, so long as I acted the part they shouldn't suspect me. Part of me was glad I could use the illusion spell in towns, though – especially after Death Gun – I was more than aware of its potential to be abused.

The instant I was on the 27th Floor I beelined towards the dungeon, speeding off as fast as I could manage safely. As I made my way through the dungeon, I was careful not to encounter any monsters; if I attacked or took any damage of any sort, the shell would be broken and the illusion would vanish. After experimentation, I'd learned that 'attacking' counted drawing my weapon, but not an open-hand slap, for some reason. Maybe it was a girl thing. Either way, I didn't want to have to deal with recasting and reselecting one of the two disguises I had available to me; partially because the initial cost was massive – more than half of my magic – partially because the incantation was a bitch and a half and I didn't want to do it without Argo feeding me the commands, and partially because the Cait Sith disguise was based off of Alicia Rue, who'd insisted on my scan being based on her rather than Gilvs when she learned what I was in Freelia for. Y'know, on second thought her wide grin and knowing giggle probably should have clued me in, but I still hadn't looked at my scans. I gave Kirito shit about his GGO avatar, but right now I looked and sounded female... Nobody could know about this. Ever.

I arrived in front of the boss's doorway and looked around. "Hello~," I called out, peering back and forth. "Is anyone here? Crimson Blitz, come out and play~." Still, nobody answered me and I grinned. "Seriously, I'm here to talk to you all. I want to join you." Nothing happened; Argo had been right, this was the time when they were shifting watchers. "Excellent," I purred. "I'm alone." The first thing I did was to activate Future Step. My eyes bled from the Sylph green to the dull crimson that marked the skill, and I sighed slowly. I raised my hand and chanted a quick spell; a circle appeared on the ground and rose into a cylinder, and I shifted to the right slightly. I repeated this process three more times and nodded in satisfaction; that should just about do it. Good thing about that spell? While the Disguise Race counted any completed spell as an attack and broke the illusion, the spells I'd just cast could be set ahead of time and then completed whenever I snapped my fingers. So useful. That done, I just sat back and waited patiently for my guests to arrive into my parlor.

"Hey! Who are you?!"

I'd been waiting for ten minutes. C'mon, people, move faster. "Hi!" I chirped, bouncing over to three people that were there. Two males, one female - Sylph, Imp, and Imp respectively. "I'm, uh, I'm Cassandra." Named after the famous prophet - I felt it was fitting. My other disguises had similarly-themed names; made it easy to remember them. "You guys are with the Crimson Blitz, right?" C'mon, Rythin, remember how Leafa moves and talks. You look like her now, so act like her.

"Uh, yeah," the Sylph said, looking me over. "We are..."

"Cool! Can I help you fight the boss?"

The two Imps looked at each other, then at the Sylph. Looks like he's the leader of this particular task force. "What's your deal, anyway?" Greenie said.

I beamed at him, leaning forward slightly with my arms extended behind my back, hands clasped. Don't know why, but Leafa did it every now and then, and I was trying to copy her mannerisms as best I could. "This is my first boss raid, and I really wanna fight, so I was just hanging around until a group showed up that I could join. I'm a..." Here I raised a finger and stared at the ceiling, trying desperately to project innocence. "Support mage, with a focus on physical and defensive buff spells. I can do some light healing, too. That's what my friend told me to go with, anyway, and she's really good at this game." Technically true. Misleading, but technically true, since Leafa is the one that told me to use that line. It made sense; that was probably the most generic of the skillsets I could claim to have, and if I kept shifting around during an infiltration fight they might not even notice I wasn't doing anything useful.

"A support mage, huh?" the Sylph said, looking down at me. Stupid tall people. "I don't know... We're usually pretty full."

Cue the Silica act: I pouted. "Pleeease? Pretty please? It really would mean a lot to me..." I looked up at him with big eyes and a wobbly lower lip.

He sighed and glanced back at the two Imps; they, in turn, just shrugged. Girl Imp was a mace user, and Guy Imp had a big staff strapped to his back, so my guess was attack mage. A lot of big guilds like these guys just had so many damage dealers and tanks that they didn't even need to bother with support, so a support mage offering to join up would be nearly irresistible. "Okay, okay," he sighed. "You can join so long as we have an open spot after everyone gets here. If we even have a raid today."

"Yay! Thanks!" I grinned at him, cackling at his foolishness in my mind. What an idiot.

"Alright, just stand close, okay?" I obliged the Sylph and he gestured; the Imp raised his staff and chanted a quick illusion spell. I made the appropriate gasps of awe - a buff and healing mage would have no reason to use illusion spells, of course - and he grinned at me before starting to whisper. "This is just so we don't get attacked by monsters or other players while we're waiting, alright? Don't go outside the ring or talk too loudly," - here he gestured at the ground, and I made a big show of looking around me to see the glittering ring inscribed on the floor - "or it'll break, and we'll have to recast the spell."

The female Imp tapped me on the shoulder and I looked over at her. "It's nice to have another girl around to chat with," she sighed. Shit shit shit shit shit, this is bad this is bad! "I mean, the guys are cool and all but sometimes I just wanna have a little girl talk, y'know? Name's Leah, by the way." Abort mission abort abort abo-ho-horrrrrt, I wailed in my head.

I laughed uneasily. "Sorry, my friend also plays this game, so I'm usually with her." I giggled. "I'm usually not the only girl in the group." Also technically true. Since I'm a guy.

The Imp grinned mischievously. "So have you seen the pictures of General Eugene from the Salamanders? Now there is one good-looking slice of beefcake."

"Heheh, yeah..." Fuuuuuuuck. The Imp looked like she was going to continue discussing the physical attractiveness of Eugene and possibly the Spriggan Lord if my luck kept up when there was a commotion down the hall and the three players stiffened before drawing their weapons. "Oh thank the gods," I whispered.

"Did you say something?" she asked me.

"Nothing!"

The commotion turned out to be a player running towards the boss room, and I nodded when I recognized the long purple hair and the striped dress. "Yuuki, hold it!" a familiar voice called out. Asuna was here too, exactly as according to schedule. The rest of the Sleeping Knights were there with them; Yuuki skidded to a halt, and the guild grouped together. Yuuki took a step forward and Asuna whipped out her wand to stop her; good, looks like her senses haven't been dulled by whatever the problem last night was. "Ek kalla fimm fiskr, brjóta ljúga galdr," she chanted, cupping her hand, and I watched carefully; a pool of water appeared in her hand and spawned five tiny blue fish. Searcher, was it? That'd find us easily, though it wouldn't break my own illusion unless it struck me directly. She blew at the fish and they scattered, fanning out to fill the hallway. All of the Sleeping Knights watched, Nori holding on to Yuuki's shoulders, as the fish swam down the hallway. Suddenly, two of them stopped and swam straight towards us; they impacted the shield and disappeared with a ripple effect.

"Look!" one of the girls gasped - maybe Nori? I couldn't tell - as the concealment disappeared and the three Crimson Blitz players cowered slightly, their weapons drawn.

"W-w... Hang on, hang on, hang on!" the Sylph called, waving his hands wildly. "We're not here to fight you!" Which was smart, given that Yuuki could probably trash these three without breaking a sweat.

"Then lower your weapons," Asuna snapped, her wand pointed at the four of us. "Now!"

The Sylph turned to us and nodded; the three complied quickly, desperate not to antagonize her. I couldn't draw my weapon, naturally, and so settled for pressing my arms close to my chest, using my hands to hide my mouth. It made me look worried and tiny, and also had the fringe benefit of letting me hide the massive smirk I had at Asuna's authoritative tone. Welcome back, Lightning Flash, I missed you.

Asuna said something to Siune, and the other Undine mage raised her staff; probably an order to attack us if we tried anything. Siune said something else, but I couldn't pick out what. "If you're not PKers, then why were you hiding from us?" Asuna demanded.

"We were waiting for someone!" the Sylph said. "We were hiding, because we didn't want to get hit by a mob before our friends got here?" His tone was halfway between condescending - that is, of course we'd try to remain safe when it was just the four of us, stupid - and placating - as in, oh god oh god please don't kill us. "You know how it is."

"Alright then." At Asuna's acceptance, the three Crimson Blitz members slumped slightly in relief. " _We're_ here to take on the boss. So if you're not ready to enter yet, we'd like to take a crack at it first."

The guy lowered his hands. "N-no, that's cool," he said. We moved off to the side and the Sleeping Knights walked past us, giving us a wide berth on the off chance that we really were PKers and were going to spring a surprise attack. Asuna in particular gave us a cautious look, and I tried to avoid meeting her gaze; but she didn't say anything, and I let out a little sigh of relief. "We'll just wait here," Sylph guy said after they'd passed us. "You know, until our buddies arrive. Oh, and... watch your backs in there. Good luck!" he called out. The Imp spellcaster raised his staff and chanted the invisibility spell again, and at the same time the other Imp raised her hand and muttered something. I couldn't hear it, but she lowered her hand almost immediately, so I didn't really care all that much.

The Sleeping Knights approached the door, but as we disappeared I watched as Yuuki turned around to look at where our invisible bodies were. Jun said something, I thought, but Yuuki kept staring dubiously; eventually, Asuna placed her hand on Yuuki's shoulder and escorted her forward. They stood in front of the door for a while in a little huddle, and I watched them carefully. Jun raised his fist and shouted something I couldn't make out, but it had to have been something stupid because Asuna reached forward and flicked his forehead. "Did you recognize the Undine spellcaster?" the Imp guy said, and my ears flicked as I listened to them absently.

"Yeah, that was Asuna, I think," the Imp woman - Leah - replied.

"Oh, my friend told me about her!" I added cheerfully. "I think she described her as 'a pretty Undine with a branch wand and a rapier'. Doesn't she work with a mercenary group?"

"Yeah, the group's called Trinity," Sylph guy told me. "They're lead by this real dick, Rythin. Guy's an asshole in every way."

I crossed my arms. "I've seen him around. I think he's kinda cute," I huffed. Oh gods oh gods oh gods did those words really just come out of my mouth. I'd scream if it wouldn't break character _so_ hard.

"Whatever you say, sweetheart," Leah told me. "Not my type, that's for certain. Besides, he's already dating someone."

"Aw..." I whined. "Rats." I really do have to remember to buy Silica some cake once we reach that floor with the cheesecake shop she liked. She's earned it, that's for certain.

A grating sound caught our attention and we looked over to see that the Sleeping Knights had finally pushed open the doors and entered the boss room. The Sylph guy turned to Leah. "Are you getting video?" She grinned and raised her hand, tapping at nothing; after a second, a window appeared with a familiar - heh - video feed. "Excellent."

"What's that?" I asked innocently, peering at it. Yeah, that's what I thought; it was showing a view of the boss chamber as the torches inside started lighting up, one at a time. A Peeping spell. Made sense, really; they needed to be able to see the boss's attack patterns if they were going to kill-steal, especially because there were a bunch of people willing to go against a boss multiple times and get further each time. A successful snipe - and all apologies to Sinon for offending her, of course - required that the Crimson Blitz rush the boss almost immediately after the previous group failed.

"It's the insides of the boss room," Leah told me. "I cast a spell that'll let us watch as they fight."

"I don't know," I frowned slightly. "That seems... a little mean, doesn't it?"

The Sylph guy shook his head. "Look, we're just here to beat the boss, okay? This is how we do it."

I shrugged and started watching the video - hey, I wasn't going to pass up free intel, and it beat standing around for ten to fifteen minutes. I could see the Sleeping Knights and Asuna taking up a cautious stance, almost circular in nature as they waited for the boss to appear. Soon enough, it obliged; flames traced the ground and rose into the air, forming the fighting ring. Black blocks appeared in the air and started expanding into a humanoid shape, and I watched as it grew into a figure over four meters tall. Shit, that thing's big. The blocks shattered, revealing black skin, and when the boss was finally revealed I almost swore out loud, somehow managing to avoid breaking my cutesy persona. That thing was a four-armed two-headed giant - I wonder if it was also a purple-people-eater - and its horned heads grinned malevolently as it towered over the Sleeping Knights. Two arms each held a massive hammer, while the other two gripped either end of a massive chain. It had scars here and there along its muscular body, and its only ornamentation was a large red crystal at its neck. It threw back its head and roared, and the Sleeping Knights got ready for battle.

"Let's get him!" Asuna shouted.

"Right!"

It was actually a really neat fight, for their first run; the giant started off slow and ponderous, but as they chipped away at its health it started speeding up. Honestly, Talken was the one that surprised me the most - I'd had him pegged as a mage, but he was up there with his terrifyingly long lance, carving away at the giant's calves. Jun and Tecchi were the tanks, as expected, and Yuuki, Nori, and Talken the damage dealers while Siune and Asuna held back and healed as best they could. The giant itself had two main attacks at the start - smash person with giant fuck-off hammer and smash person with other giant fuck-off hammer. The hits themselves came in two varieties: truck, and slightly larger truck. After every swing of those massive war hammers the giant was stunned for half a second, maybe a heartbeat more, and the Sleeping Knights recognized that almost immediately as Asuna shouted out commands. The back was wide open, too. As the health dropped, it incorporated new attacks, like a wide-ranged chain sweep that managed to catch Tecchi by surprise, getting past his massive shield and killing him, and a charging attack that gored Siune, ending her contributions to the fight. Still, though, they put up a good fight; it had a few weird moments where it just raised its arms and covered its face for a few seconds, giving in some easy damage. I wonder... In the end, they'd taken too much damage too soon, and they wiped when the boss busted out an eight-hit combo with its hammers.

Surprisingly, Talken was a Leprechaun. Why that was the most surprising thing I learned in that fight, I'm not sure.

"These guys just make it too easy!" Guy Imp laughed. I blinked up at him, curious, and he elaborated, "We've seen that group of six before, the past two boss raids. They're actually pretty good, so by the time they lose we've seen most of the boss's early attacks and know what we're up against. Some people would say it's dirty pool, but I think it's fair."

"You're still cheating," I pouted.

"It's not cheating," he corrected me. "It's creatively using your resources." I subsided, still pretending that I wasn't certain about their actions being nice. Honestly, it wasn't a bad tactic; we'd done similar things in Aincrad, although the scouting party knew exactly what their job was - engage the boss, get its patterns, and above all _don't die_. I knew by now that the Sleeping Knights had respawned and Asuna had pulled them off to the side to explain exactly what was going on, and started a mental countdown. It was... 2:30 in the afternoon, and given that it was in the middle of the afternoon, most people weren't online... They'd need to gather a raid group of fifty-odd players, which would take about an hour. That was more than enough time for the Sleeping Knights and Asuna to get their gear repaired and attack the boss room again - they'd be back in about thirty minutes, hopefully.

Twenty minutes later, a large group of players showed up and I tensed, only to relax when I did a brief counting of heads. That put their count at about twenty - nowhere near enough for a full raid group. "Hey, boss," Sylph guy said as the concealment spell broke. "It was those Sleeping Knights guys again. You'd think they'd learn."

"At least they had a seventh player with them this time," Leah said.

The three spies went off with the guy they'd called boss, probably to give him the information, and I was left more or less alone near the back. I slunk off to the side slightly, hiding near the edge of a chatting group. Close enough that people looking over would think I was talking with them, but far enough away that the ones talking wouldn't really notice me. Finally, my middle school years are worth something. I let a brief moment of relaxation run through me, only to tense up again when someone in heavy armor approached me. He made a big show of looking me up and down, and I started mentally preparing to kill him and fight the rest of the guild. I really didn't want to have to do that; if I got into a fight, I'd get killed without doing much damage and the rest of the Crimson Blitz members would know about the trap. As good as I was, even I couldn't kill twenty people when surrounded - especially when they were backed up with healers. "So, Leah and the boys tell me you want to fight with us," the large Gnome said finally.

"Uh huh!" I nodded vigorously, bouncing up and down slightly. "This is my first raid, so I wanna be part of a large group like you guys! Oh man, this is gonna be great!" Silica crossed with Leafa - a terrifying combination. May those two never realize the power they hold.

He grinned. "Sure, so long as some of the boys don't show up. We can always use another pretty mage helping us out." I tried to look away bashfully, with a small grin, but I couldn't exactly replicate the blushing cheeks and the grin was hard to keep steady when I just wanted to vomit. "Who knows, do well enough and you might be able to join the guild permanently."

"That'd be neat!" I said, rocking back and forth on my feet before leaning forward slightly. "You guys are so cool."

After that, they left me alone, more or less, and I was thankful for that. Big guy drifted off to talk to someone near the other side of the pack, and the three spies had split up to join their groups. The mage squad was near the back, chatting about their spells - most of them were Salamanders, unsurprisingly - and I grinned. All is as according to the plan. I heard the sound of running feet and I nodded; like clockwork, Asuna. I watched as the small group of seven slowed from a run to a stop at the sight of all the other players. Asuna said something quietly to Yuuki before approaching big Gnome dude. "Excuse me!" she called out, and he turned to look at her. "We'd like to try the boss before you do. Could you guys let us by?"

I seriously doubted they'd let that happen. As it turned out, I was right; big Gnome smiled patronizingly. "Sorry, dollface," he said, and I saw red for a second at the offensive way he referred to Asuna. "The boss room's off-limits for now." I immediately swiped my menu open and shot off a quick message; I liked ironic echoes and that line was perfect for one.

"Wait," Asuna said, scowling, "off-limits? What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means, in a few minutes, the rest of the guild's gonna roll up here," Gnome guy said. "We're just holding the room 'til they do. If ya want, you can wait over there." He was starting to piss me off.

"And how long do you expect us to wait?" Asuna said, ice-cold. Eek, I was getting flashbacks to when the two of us would argue over boss raids in Aincrad constantly.

He tapped his chin in a mockery of thinking. "Um... another hour or so?" And that little whistling sound was the last of my restraint just sailing right off the cliff. Man, these guys are gonna be _so_ fucked.

"But... We don't have that kind of time!" my sister snapped. "If you were going in right now, that'd be a different story, but you're not, so let us go in first."

"Look, I don't make the rules." Bullshit! I call bullshit! "I'm just a grunt here, following orders like everyone else. You got a complaint, go to the guild headquarters and talk to them. It's over in Ygg City, so just -"

"Are you kidding?!" Asuna interrupted him. "That's far away! It'd take us at least an hour to get there."

"Hey, big guy," Yuuki said, calmly walking forward. The rest of the Crimson Blitz paused in their conversations and looked over. "Just tryin' to figure things out here. So, no matter how nice we ask, you're not gonna let us get by you," she said, stopping in front of him fearlessly. "Is that what you're sayin'?"

"Yeah, that's it, that's pretty much what I'm sayin'."

"Oookay, if that's what you're sayin'..." Saying has stopped sounding like a word. Fuck, I hate it when that happens. "You wanna fight?" she asked, smiling up at him. Honestly... If we didn't hate each other, I think I might actually sorta maybe get along with Yuuki. She's got the fighting spirit, at least.

"Huh?!" the big guy grunted, looking startled as a wave of shock ran through the assembled Crimson Blitz guild members. Asuna looked just as shocked, so I'm assuming that maybe Yuuki didn't let the rest of the Sleeping Knights know about this little throw-down.

Asuna looked worried. "But... Yuuki, are you sure?"

"Asuna..." I stared at Yuuki as she stared down the big guy in front of her. "Sometimes, you gotta fight to get your point across. Y'know..." She turned around and grinned over her shoulder. "Like how dead serious you are about something. Just sayin'!" she finished with a small chirp.

Asuna looked stunned. "Yep, that's pretty much how it is," Jun said, hefting his massive sword over his shoulder with one hand. Seriously, that thing is as tall as he is. Asuna murmured something as the Sleeping Knights closed ranks, their weapons at the ready.

"These guys know exactly what I'm talkin' about," Yuuki told Asuna as she stared down the Gnome. "We could chop away this whole day, and they'd defend this room to the last player." Heh. ...Fuck, I might almost _like_ Yuuki. "Right? Big guy?"

And he was trapped like a rat. If he backed down from her challenge, that was tantamount to saying that he didn't think his group of twenty could hold off seven players - and if he agreed, he'd just committed himself to a fight that was going to waste a lot of his resources. I watched with barely concealed glee as he gritted his teeth, trembling, before finally declaring, "W-w-we got orders ta..."

Yuuki unsheathed her sword with a calm smile. "Come on," she told him before dropping the smile. "Draw your sword." A small thrill ran down my spine, and I arched my back slightly as my stomach muscles clenched. Yes! I've been looking for someone like her. What a shame that she hated me.

Gnome gritted his teeth, and reached back to grab his weapon, and Yuuki lunged forward, sword licking out with a crash to deflect his weak swipe. Easily, she stepped into his range and sliced open his chest, draining his health by a third in a single blow. He grunted and swung heavily, but Yuuki easily countered with a simple Sword Skill, knocking his blow away and chaining into Vertical Square, sending him flying back with ease. He skidded to a halt among the crowd of watching fighters, and slowly forced himself back to his feet. "You little punk," he growled, his health at red already in just two blows. "I'm gonna make you pay for that!" The rest of the guild got ready to fight, the mages clustering near the back where they were the most protected, and I smiled, moving over to join them.

There was a brief moment of tension where both sides stared at each other, and then Asuna gasped suddenly. She stared into space for a second before her eyes firmed, and I felt another chill down my spine. Had... Fucking hell, Yuuki had done it. Whatever problem Asuna had been having, it had been shattered; she put away her wand and drew her rapier with a ring of steel that echoed in my memories. She stepped up next to Yuuki and smiled at the smaller Imp, and Yuuki grinned back up at her. ...I can't hate Yuuki. Not if she made Asuna smile like that. ...Fuck. All I'd managed to do was make her mad, and then in all of two hours Yuuki had her smiling confidently again. Rythin, you're a useless idiot, aren't you?

Suddenly, the Crimson Blitz members grinned, snickering darkly, and I narrowed my eyes. "Hey, you guys?" Nori called out, looking over her shoulder. Another group of players from the Crimson Blitz guild were racing forward, trying to make it in time, and this one had another thirty players or so. Almost impossible for the Sleeping Knights to defeat, especially since this would make them surrounded.

I breathed slowly, focusing on my plan. If everything moved as it should, things would be fine. "Sorry, Asuna," I heard Yuuki say apologetically. "My big mouth got you into this mess. But it was totally worth it! Know why?" Asuna just stared at her. "Because just now, I saw the best smile I've ever seen on you!" I gritted my teeth, careful not to let my anger get the best of me. I couldn't be there for Asuna, but Yuuki was, and that grated on me. She was _my_ sister, damn it! I should be the one to make her feel better when she was depressed!

"In that case," Asuna said with a determined smile, "I'll start pulling my weight! We might not take down this boss, but I promise... The next boss..." She grinned. "That one's ours!"

A member of the mage squad snickered as he watched the little drama, the Sleeping Knights firming their grip on their weapons and refusing to back down even as they were surrounded. "Heh... Some folks just don't know when to quit!"

Calm, Rythin. Calm. You can't kill him yet. You just needed the queen to move into place and reveal the check, and _then_ you can kill him for his foolish words.

A black blur from the back of the pack dashed up on the wall, faster than any of the other players were moving, and raced along the wall with the Wall Run skill. With a grunt, the player kicked off the wall and landed with a heavy thud, sliding to a halt between the rear of the Sleeping Knights and the approaching force of Crimson Blitz. The thirty players screeched to a halt as the figure slowly straightened up, black coat flapping slightly, and Asuna's eyes widened. "Sorry guys," the figure said, and I hid a triumphant grin.

"No way..." Asuna breathed, turning around as though she couldn't believe what she was hearing.

With a ring of steel, a large metal sword was slammed into the ground, and the thirty Crimson Blitz all gasped. "Stand down," Kirito declared, Yui and Din riding on his shoulders like the angel and devil. "This boss room's off limits."

Man, he fucking _nailed_ that delivery.

* * *

 **I really don't know what to say. Rythin fucked up hard, but he's trying his best to un-fuck up. He royally pissed off Asuna, but he's doing his best to help her out where he can. Still, though, it would probably help if he knew why exactly she was mad at him. Regardless of whether he knows what he did wrong or not, he's (relatively) aware that the best thing he can do right now is just be there to support her – I guess? Maybe he just wants to throw down with a big group of people.**

 **Kana, on the other hand, is trying to give the best advice she can; without knowing the whole story, she can only do so much, but her advice – with Yuuki's simple words of wisdom – seem to have helped Asuna figure out what she needs to do.**

 **Also, 'weather' is the worst word because after seeing it about ten times it stops looking like a word and turns into just a weird collection of letters. This is unrelated to anything in the chapter, it's just an observation.**

 **Many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.**


	22. Monumental Achievement

**Chapter 22: Monumental Achievement**

* * *

 **January 8** **th** **, 2026**

The members of the Sleeping Knights stood in a loose battle formation, weapons at the ready. Honestly, with Yuuki and Asuna, they could probably take down the majority of the Crimson Blitz members here without breaking a sweat; I might not even be needed. The thought sent a brief pulse of anger through me, but I crushed it down with the ease born from plenty of practice, ignoring the fact that there was no reason for me to be angry in the first place.

Suddenly, the Crimson Blitz members grinned, snickering darkly, and I narrowed my eyes. "Hey, you guys?" Nori called out, looking over her shoulder. Another group of players from the Crimson Blitz guild were racing forward, trying to make it in time, and this one had another thirty players or so. Almost impossible for the Sleeping Knights to defeat, especially since this would make them surrounded.

I breathed slowly, focusing on my plan. If everything moved as it should, things would be fine. "Sorry, Asuna," I heard Yuuki say apologetically. "My big mouth got you into this mess. But it was totally worth it! Know why?" Asuna just stared at her. "Because just now, I saw the best smile I've ever seen on you!" I gritted my teeth, careful not to let my anger get the best of me. I couldn't be there for Asuna, but Yuuki was, and that grated on me. She was _my_ sister, damn it! I should be the one to make her feel better when she was depressed!

"In that case," Asuna said with a determined smile, "I'll start pulling my weight! We might not take down this boss, but I promise... The next boss..." She grinned. "That one's ours!"

A black blur from the back of the pack dashed up on the wall, faster than any of the other players were moving, and raced along the wall with the Wall Run skill. With a grunt, the player kicked off the wall and landed with a heavy thud, sliding to a halt between the rear of the Sleeping Knights and the approaching force of Crimson Blitz. The thirty players screeched to a halt as the figure slowly straightened up, black coat flapping slightly, and Asuna's eyes widened. "Sorry guys," the figure said, and I hid a triumphant grin.

"No way..." Asuna breathed, turning around as though she couldn't believe what she was hearing.

With a ring of steel, a large metal sword was slammed into the ground, and the thirty Crimson Blitz all gasped. "Stand down," Kirito declared, Yui and Din riding on his shoulders like the angel and devil. "This boss room's off limits."

Man, he fucking nailed that delivery.

"Kirito!" Asuna exclaimed happily.

"You sure you wanna do this, buddy?" The lead Salamander from the second pack of players said, hefting his weapon over his shoulder. "It's a bad idea. I doubt even you could take down a horde this big solo." So they do recognize him. Neat.

"Yeah, maybe," Kirito admitted with an easy grin. "There's only one way to find out for sure."

"It's your funeral," the Salamander shrugged. "Okay, people, you heard the man. Mages!" He raised a hand, and with a snap called out, "Let 'im have it!"

Behind the group of fighters, three robed players - I couldn't make out their exact race from where I was standing - raised weapons and started chanting, though I couldn't hear the babble of words over the sound of the mages near me shifting. "Watch out Kirito!" Asuna cried, only to turn back with a gasp as the first group of Crimson Blitz members finally got into position, menacing the Sleeping Knights. Asuna whipped back to stare at Kirito, gritting her teeth, when she finally noticed that he was looking back at her with a confident grin.

The mages finally finished chanting their spells, and I watched curiously as the three projectiles hovered in the air. I saw... one spear of white light, three blue arrows, and three purple balls. Nowhere near enough to stop Kirito, or really even slow him down. The mages launched the spells, the magic flying through the air fast enough to distort the air with their passing, and closed in on Kirito. I knew exactly what the players standing next to me would expect to see - a gigantic explosion as the seven explosive spells collided with Kirito, more or less wiping him off the map instantly. Thing was, though...

Spells are so _slow_ compared to bullets.

Just before the spells struck home, Kirito pulled his sword from the ground and swung it through the air flashily before placing it behind his head and crouching, the blade becoming covered with a blue light. I let a small smile creep onto my lips as I watched; stuff like this was better than anything else. The first spell to strike was the spear of white light and Kirito met it sword-first, swinging down with a grunt. The spell shattered, disappearing into white particles of light, and Kirito spun to meet the three blue arrows. These he countered by backflipping, his sword licking out to meet them and destroying the spell with sparks flying. I hid a smile as the mages beside me stiffened in shock. Kirito finished the backflip, the first purple ball streaking toward him almost in slow-motion, and I folded my arms. Stop playing with your food, Kirito. With three short shouts, Kirito knocked the balls aside with his blade and they exploded into purple smoke, filling the air.

When the smoke and flames died away, Kirito was standing there, unharmed. "No way..." Yuuki breathed.

"He cut through spells," Talken murmured, staring at Kirito.

Tecchi said, haltingly, "But... that's impossible..."

"I didn't know he could do stuff like that!" one of the mages beside me stammered. "What just happened?!" I briefly debated saying something along the lines of 'It's entirely possible that there is no rhyme or reason behind the actions we have just seen and they are, in fact, completely random - thus leaving us no choice but to accept the outcome without excessive amounts of complaining.' but regretfully dropped the line because it wouldn't exactly fit the persona I was projecting at the moment.

And, because I could hear the Klein in my head whining at me to say it in five words or less, 'Shit happens, deal with it'.

There. Now shut up, phantom Klein.

"How'd you do that?" the Salamander leader said, staring at Kirito.

"Easy," Kirito told him with a flick of his sword. "Compared to a bullet from a high-powered rifle, knocking down high-speed spells is nothing." He'd practiced that with me - it was an easy way for me to get my Illusion and Fire magic up - and he'd taken to calling it Spell Blast or something like that. On his shoulders, Yui and Din were perched, completely unruffled by the acrobatic moves my best friend had just pulled off, and I grinned.

The Salamander blanched. "Oh crap. Battle formations!" he called, looking back at his squad. "On the double!" Quickly, a line of Salamander tanks formed a shield wall in front of Kirito, the mages already casting their spells again, and I had to stop myself from nodding approvingly. They knew what they were doing, at least, which made them competent. They might have gotten the information on the boss through less than upstanding means, but they weren't slouches in the combat department either. I had our doubts about being able to hold them off for too long.

Kirito evidently had the same thoughts. "I can only hold them off for a couple!" he shouted to Asuna without looking back. "Head for the boss room. Hurry!" Asuna nodded.

My eyes narrowed as Kirito reached back to grab a second sword that wasn't there - and then a golden sword with three blue gems set in the crossguard appeared and he drew the sword with a ring of steel. Excalibur, Kirito's slightly more powerful dick extension... The first time I'd seen it since retrieving the blade from Thrymheim. The players were now facing Kirito at his strongest and most compensated - when he had someone to protect, and he was going to use all his might to do so - and mumbled among themselves, some of the tanks taking a few steps back. "Oh yeah?" the Salamander leader grumbled. "Stand your ground! There's only one of him!"

"Not! Even!"

I forced another grin down as the brash voice rang out from behind the second pack. Excellent timing - with that piece in place, we would be able to flip the second pack and capture them, leaving only the first group able to fight; red knight flanks while black queen attacks from front, and capture the pawns. Or would he be the red rook? "I'm here too!" Sparks flew out from the back ranks. "Can't... see me yet!"

"You're late!" Kirito shouted. "What took you so long?!"

"Sorry man!" Klein shouted, raising his katana over his head and slashing down on a player. "Took a wrong turn!" Oh, how like him.

"Klein's here too?" Asuna breathed. Yui turned back and gave her mother a thumbs up and a huge grin; Din just focused on the battle at hand, though Kirito hadn't moved from his spot. Asuna stared at the back of the man she loved, holding a hand over her heart, and I gritted my teeth. It wasn't fair, not in the slightest. I just wanted to help her, that's all. Yuuki stared at her, and Asuna turned to face the Imp. "My friends will take care of those players. But if we want to get to the boss room today, we'll have to get through the ones blocking it ourselves."

"Gotcha!" Yuuki chirped with a huge smile.

The players facing the Sleeping Knights readied their weapons, their resolve already shaken by Yuuki's brutal attack on their spokesperson. As a huge explosion rang out behind her, swallowing up Kirito's form, Asuna didn't flinch or look back. She was in full-on Lightning Flash mode. "Ready?"

"Yup!" Yuuki called as she unsheathed her sword with a flourish, the blade spinning as it leapt into her hand. The Sleeping Knights took up their own battle positions - the fighters in the front in a V, Asuna and Siune in the back - and then charged as one.

Jun and Tecchi struck first, using heavy sweeping blows to knock a pair of players off of their feet - and then stepped aside as Talken thrust forward, his spear impaling two players simultaneously. Hells, that was impressive for anyone, let alone someone that looked like he should be studying rather than killing other players. Nori jumped over his head and flipped in midair, bringing her heavy warhammer down with a slam. Players jumped out of the way, but one guy wasn't so lucky and ended up with the spike of the massive maul in his back.

Yuuki was like death incarnate; one Salamander, either foolhardy or stupidly overconfident, swung at her, and she didn't even bother with parrying the blow. Instead, she hit the ground and slid through his wide legs, catching herself and jumping onto his back with a handspring. He had about half a second to realize she'd landed on his back before she jumped off, slashing his back open with a swing of her sword as she went. Another player, this one with a sword and shield instead of a two-handed sword, approached her, but she landed on his shield feet first and used it as a springpad, jumping off. She landed and dashed past him, nearly cutting him in half as she went, just in time to dodge another player's downward swing and slice him open from shoulder to hip. Yet another player charged with their knife, Yuuki easily parrying the blow and kicking her in the stomach before turning to face the charging Sylph with the spear and parrying his blows twice before stabbing him in the side.

It was like watching poetry in motion, only the poet was a purple-haired swordswoman and the words she was writing were screams of pain and the ink her opponent's blood. Such a shame that we couldn't get along, really, since her fighting style was eerily like mine - hell, it _was_ mine only with a longer sword. And the whole time, she was giggling and smiling like this was the best time she'd ever had in her whole life. Fuck, really regretting that now.

Despite stabbing and slashing and what appeared to be slamming the hilt of her sword into the small of someone's back, Yuuki couldn't actually kill her opponents in one blow, however; and the mage squad was on healing duty immediately, the mages beside me chanting a steady stream of words. One by one, the injured players stood up and shook themselves off and charged again, only to be brought low by the cheerful and giggling Yuuki. I _really_ wanted to charge in and challenge her one-on-one; but I couldn't, not yet. I had something I needed to do first.

I watched with steadily rising approval as the Sleeping Knights proved they could fight as a team; Yuuki jumped over a man after kneeing him in the stomach and cut him open as she flipped over his body, but landed with her back to another player, his sword raised over his head. She didn't even flinch as Nori came out of nowhere to bulldoze the bastard from the side, slamming the head of her hammer into his side and sending him flying before chaining the blow into a strike towards a Salamander with a staff. The butt of her weapon knocked him off-balance, only to be struck up by Tecchi with a shield bash that knocked the Salamander out of the fight. The large Gnome turned to block a strike, engaging a knife-wielder just long enough for Talken to run the attacker through. The Leprechaun then turned and blocked an overhead strike with his spear, fighting with the player until Jun came from behind and carved the attacker open with a single sweep of his massive greatsword that led into another slash that took out another man.

Yuuki danced backwards gracefully to observe the battle when she gasped; seems she finally realized what was happening as four players that had been badly injured stood up, green light playing over their body. "Hey!" she shouted. "No fair!" I get it. For all their skill, they were still new to fighting other players and didn't really know to kill the mages first - and they were paying for their naivety as the mages healed their wounded allies and brought the Sleeping Knights closer to defeat. The Knights still all had green health, but as I watched Tecchi was forced back by a persistent attacker, the knife pinging off of his shoulder armor and draining a little bit of health. The Sleeping Knights were just too new at this to know what to do.

But they had someone that did: Asuna. She turned to Siune and said something before backing away, backflipping lithely until she was a good distance away and landing in a runner's crouch. I recognized exactly what she was going to do and triggered Future Step, careful not to let any of the other mages see what I was doing; I took two steps back and one to the right, masking it as just restless shifting. Don't exactly want to get impaled before being able to say hello. I turned off Future Step and watched as Asuna pushed off the ground and raced forward at a dead sprint, bringing her rapier back as it began to glow a pale blue.

"Yuuki, watch out!" she shouted, and the Imp parried a sword blow and threw her opponent to the side before turning to look. As Yuuki did that, Asuna lifted off of the ground and thrust her rapier forward, streaking forward like a meteor; Yuuki's eyes widened and she stumbled backwards with a yelp as the blue blur passed by her. The trail of wind and blue smoke knocked players off of their feet - that Gnome dick from earlier soared in the air, a red gash across his chest, and burst into brown flames. Heh, serves him right - and I braced myself. She landed in front of the mage squad with a beautiful flip and stuck the landing, skidding forward until she came to a halt, crouched.

After the wind from her dashing attack died down, one of the Salamander attack mages looked at her and gasped. "It's the Berserk Healer!" he shouted. Slowly, Asuna staggered to her feet, swaying slightly, and brought her rapier back - and then with a shout, thrust forward until she had impaled that player through the skull. Ouch. She really doesn't like being called that.

I cleared my throat and stepped forward, ignoring the clearly panicking players beside me and the dying Salamander on the end of Asuna's rapier, and waved easily to Asuna. "Hi, um... Miss Asuna, right?" Asuna turned her glare toward me, and I was doubly glad that some idiot had gotten stabbed first. "Could, um..." I triggered Future Step and was rewarded with her eyes widening slightly as she realized who I was. "Could you take, maybe... one step to your left and one back?" She did so, the mages still stunned and not taking the chance to run. "Eensy bit to your right... Perfect." I stepped to the side, hiding in the exact center of the four red cylinders, and raised my hand as a shark-like grin snuck onto my face. "Boom."

With a flourish, I snapped my fingers, and all hell broke loose.

The four spells I had cast earlier were delayed-trigger explosions, and they were centered on the mage squad; as pillars of fire erupted around me and my disguise faded away, I laughed gleefully. Place the red pawn in the rear row when the opponent isn't looking, then promote to king the second the guillotine is at their throat. And, checkmate.

Still bad at chess.

"What was that?!" Yuuki yelped, appearing next to Asuna, the rest of her guild fighting a retreating battle. Somehow, they'd managed to reverse the fields so that they were between the rest of the Crimson Blitz and the boss room door. "Wait... I know you!"

"Ladies, gentlemen," I said with a courtly bow, "your boss room awaits." I stepped to the side, making a sweeping gesture. "Please, enjoy your fight and allow me to take care of the rest of these nuisances for you." Yuuki studied me for a few seconds, then nodded and barked orders, the Sleeping Knights lining up in front of the boss door.

The Crimson Blitz fighters surged forward, trying to reach the Sleeping Knights; Tecchi and Jun half-turned to face them. Calmly, though, I unsheathed my knife and walked past them, intending to get to work - but Asuna reached her hand out and stopped me. "Were you the one to call Kirito and Klein?"

I merely smiled. "I happened to be in the right place at the right time and decided to lend a hand, Asuna." Not a lie. She was probably still mad at me, so... better not to remind her that I had been spying on her. Asuna nodded and dropped her hand, and I walked forward to stand even with her. "Asuna," I began. Then I stopped; it probably wasn't the best time to be apologizing to her, what with the boss to fight and about ten angry fighters in front of me. "...Never mind." I'll catch her later, when I can apologize properly.

As I walked forward, knife gleaming and viper hissing in my ear, I heard Asuna saying something to the Sleeping Knights. But I stopped paying attention to that, my full focus on the battle ahead of me. Ten against one? Well, that was hardly fair. I mean, there were only ten of them, after all. "If you'd like to wait for reinforcements," I offered casually, my entire body tense, "I'd be okay with that. Make it a challenge."

"Who are you?" my first target spat, leveling his sword at me. The viper stretched out to meet him and I grinned tightly. Point of the weapon is wavering - he's tired. Easy to take down. "Where'd you come from?"

"Would you believe me if I wiggled my fingers and went 'maaaagic' in a spooky voice?" My only reply was a shout as he charged me, trying to run me through. "Didn't think so." As he approached, I wondered which fighting style to run with - and then grinned when I remembered who I'd just seen. Looks like it's old-school time.

I knew exactly where his thrust would land, so I danced to the side before literally flipping over his blade; he had just a second to realize what I was doing before I had landed and spun to kick him in the back, knocking him forward and out of position. The problem with that was that I was now being flanked by two fighters, one on the left with a curved sword and one on the right with a spear. Not fantastic, since the ranges were different, but I could work with it. The curved sword guy shouted and raised his sword to fight me, only to receive a brutal spinning kick to the teeth as I preemptively interrupted him from fighting. I used the brief moment of contact to jump back, forcing myself towards the player with the spear. He thrust forward, grunting, and I took the stab on the shoulder, using the new momentum to spin forward. I hit the ground knees first and slid, taking a page from Yuuki's book and going through his legs before rising to my feet and carving his back open with my Moonblade. He staggered forward, the wound glowing green, and I laughed. It's been so long since I've had so much fun. "Hey, Rythin!" Klein called out. "Was that you?"

"Yeah!" I shouted back, parrying a hand axe and replying with a right cross to the face strong enough that I'm pretty sure his entire family tree felt it. Future Step warned me of an attack from the side and I gracefully shifted to the side, allowing the woman's overhead cleave to strike the ground instead before turning my movement into a powerful kick to her side. "Thanks for coming, guys! Means a lot!"

"Bastard!" someone snarled as I used their chest as a launchpad, reaching down to stab another player through the helmet as I soared over them; the new pivot point worked beautifully and I carved the girl in half when I landed.

"No, sorry, my parents were married at the time," I told him calmly. Then I noticed a little pixie flying in the air, hovering over my battle. "Hey, Din!" I called out, backflipping out of the way of a pair of swords coming toward me from two opposite directions. "Give me a second and I'll be all done here!"

"Okay," my son called out.

Dodge, roll, parry, attack stab twist! The viper guided my strikes and I gasped with exertion as a spray of red polygons rewarded my latest attack, happy I could let loose again. The rhythm of the fight sang in my blood and I flowed with its beat, shifting and turning when the small scrapes told me I was being attacked. I flowed past the stabs and thrusts easily, Future Step burning in my eyes; unlike Yuuki, who fought blazing brightly, I was cold and fluid. Our fighting styles were so similar yet different... How strange. She liked fighting, I liked fighting, but for two separate reasons.

I grinned tightly as the last three players surrounded me, panting. "Really, gentlemen, is this best you can do?" I asked them sardonically, my dagger held loosely but carefully. "Are we really going to do this?"

"Damn straight we are," one of them growled. Oh, hey, it was the Sylph from earlier. "You cheating -"

"It's not cheating, it's creatively using my resources." Then I sighed. "Fuck it. Knife."

He blinked. "Kni-" He trailed off into a gurgle as one of my throwing knives materialized in his throat; I can move those things fast when I need to. Then it exploded, because overkill is just barely enough kill.

As he died, I realized the last two players were circling me, staying on opposite sides. Not a bad idea, really, but it wouldn't stop me. The one I was facing lunged toward me, knife flashing toward me, and I tilted my head to the side just a bit, letting the blade scrape on the choker around my neck. My hand flashed up and knocked his hand away, batting it to the side almost gently before my own knife flashed toward his chest; he needed a kill shot but I just needed to stab him and he'd die soon enough. Before my knife could pierce his chest, though, he ducked under the attack. I thrust forward with my knee, slamming it into his jaw. He staggered back, stunned, and a line of red light pierced my chest. I grinned, already pushing back and upwards. "They never learn." The player's sword flashed under my body and I landed behind him, laughing. "Seriously, why do you try to stab me from behind when I can see every move you're about to make?"

The player whirled around and grabbed my arm as I was about to stab him in the back. "Well, this is new," I observed detachedly as he turned and hurled me bodily across the hall. I slammed into the wall and bounced, falling to the ground. I coughed and shook my head as I staggered to my feet, clearing it just in time to see twin red lights go through my chest as the two players reared back to stab me. I growled under my breath and clenched my fists, the Dragontalons popping free as I danced forward, jumping as their blades passed under me and struck where I used to be. I landed on the sword, balancing for an instant on one leg before lashing out with my other foot and smashing it into the face of the owner of the sword. He crumpled, burning away into fire and I dropped as his sword fell to the ground. Before the dagger-user could react, my fist lashed out and ripped a hole in his armor big enough for me to put my head through, killing him as well.

Surrounded by the flickering flames of the dead Crimson Blitz members, I slowly straightened up, panting slightly - only to be all but knocked over again as an explosion rang out and a huge wall of fire rose. I turned, stumbling as the blast wave rippled over me, to see Kirito standing there, swords at the ready; the flame wall flickered and burned brightly, stretching from wall to wall. Shaking my head and grimacing at the heat, I slowly walked toward him, forcing myself to ignore the quickly rising temperature. As I went, Din fluttered down and landed on my shoulder, perching there calmly like I hadn't just killed ten people. "Good job, Dad," he said, folding his legs easily.

"Thanks, kid," I grunted. "Shoulder hurts a little bit, but... we should be good to go."

As I joined his side, Kirito nodded at me before glancing over his shoulder. I looked over, following his gaze, to see Asuna staring at the both of us from the inside of the slowly closing boss door. My best friend and brother flashed a V for victory sign to her; I just smiled, doubting she could see me with the fire behind me casting the shadows over my face. They should be just fine, actually; they knew the patterns now, Asuna was a talented fighter, and despite everything I could at least appreciate Yuuki's skill level. She was equally as skilled as me and the others, if not more so, and her guild fought amazingly together. Their own fluidity hadn't avoided my notice either, and though I highly doubt they're in Yuuki's exact situation they must all share some parts of it. Then the door slammed shut, cutting Asuna off from us, and I turned back to the fire. "Ready to do this, Rythin?" Kirito asked me with a calm grin, twirling his swords absently.

I flicked my knife out to the side as if to remove any blood from it. "Ready as I'll ever be," I sighed.

Together, we sheathed our weapons and then started chanting the same spell; Kirito had it available to him from the start - thanks to his race, the lucky bastard - but I'd been grinding up my Illusion skill since I'd realized how useful the misdirection could be. The flames wrapped around the pair of us and licked at our boots as we finished the spell, each of us triggering our somatic components; as Kirito clenched his fist, the flames rose and hid him from my few. Grinning, I snapped my fingers and closed my eyes.

It felt weird, really, feeling my body disappear and be reshaped. It was like floating in water, only I could still breathe and I was slowly rising. Then, my body expanded, firming out into its new shape; my arms were longer, on the ground, while my legs were shifted around on my hips. It felt weird, being on all fours without feeling uncomfortable, but I didn't really care all that much, since my new senses were kicking in with a vengeance. My massive tail was as big as I had been before the spell took hold, and I swung my gigantic head, my new muzzle full of sharp teeth. My eyes burned like molten gold, and my fur was a sleek, dark gray, a thin ribbon-like chain wrapped around my forepaws. And as for how I knew how I looked, well, Argo had been with me when I experimented.

My new transformation complete, I threw back my head and _howled_ , the sound ringing out loudly and combining with Kirito's roar. The twin tornadoes of flame split apart, revealing our new forms, and with a contemptuous snort I raised a massive paw and slashed apart the wall of flame that had separated us from the rest of the Crimson Blitz fighters. Hm... still most of them left, I see, and they seemed to be kinda fresh. I gazed over the sea of enemies, but Klein wasn't here - I guess he lost already and was respawning. A shame, though, since he really was a good fighter, albeit not one that was too used to player versus player.

"My god!" the Salamander leader gasped, staggering back at our appearance. "What the hell are they?"

Kirito was our good friend The Gleam Eyes, that damned goat demon that had triggered the end of Aincrad. Massive blue fur, twisted horns, razor sharp claws, and a snake-like tail with blazing red eyes.

As for me, my form was known as Fenrir.

Kirito and I had practiced this; we were strong in these forms, almost unstoppably so, but our magic would run out quickly. He just didn't have a large magic pool, and mine was drained from the disguise spell and the four mines. We needed to move quickly, but killing just under thirty players? Probably wasn't going to happen.

"Attack!" the Salamander leader shouted, leveling his sword at us. He didn't bother rushing us like a small group of five did - which was probably why he survived my and Kirito's initial attack.

Kirito swung out with his razor-sharp claws and knocked a heavily-armored player into the air without any problem whatsoever - and then jumped, his heavy jaws snapping closed on the poor airborne player. Hm... He said it tasted like grilled meat, right before it burned. Let's find out! I jumped over the line of tanks, not giving half a shit, and landed among the pack of clustered players, probably crushing one or two beneath my feet. Several players, braver than the others, approached and started stabbing at me, and I responded by snarling and snapping my jaws at one player, a Pooka that was going for my sensitive nose. My first bite snapped his spear in half, and my second caught him easily, nearly biting him in half. I raised my head, tossing him in the air like a rag doll, and bit down again.

Mmmmm... I'd say... Yeah, I'd say Kirito was right - a meat of some sort, definitely grilled. I wonder, what meat, though... Probably chicken. Now to find Leafa and bite her hand...

A small notification flashed in the corner of my vision, and I let out a quiet 'tsk' that didn't translate to anything from the mouth of Fenrir; my magic was draining at an alarming rate, and I realized that while I was savoring the taste of one of the Fae the other players had regrouped despite their shock and began fighting back. Impressive, really, since they were a guild focused around fighting gigantic boss monsters - the mages were in the back, where it would be difficult for us to get to them without wading through and getting bogged down by the rest of the guild. Unfortunately for them, we were two boss monsters with the intelligence of humans, though by the looks of Kirito's rampaging he's lost himself in the battle again. Snarling, I gathered my legs under me and leaped, soaring over the players only to crash to the ground behind the pack of players clustered together. Two mages didn't stop chanting, but one did and his spell backfired, exploding and covering the hall with black acrid smoke. I whined - the enhanced sense of smell kinda bites - and stalked forward, raising a massive paw and swiping. A sense of three impacts told me my attack had struck true.

When the black smoke cleared, three red flames flickered against the wall, pretty much in a straight line from where the mages had been standing. Excellent, ranged firepower has been neutralized. Of course, now Kirito and I were separated, so we were screwed.

But damned if I wasn't going down without a fight; I raised my head and howled again, the sound echoing out through the halls, and growled. Come fight me, fools! I'm a _GOD-SLAYER!_

* * *

I emerged from the Warp Gate on the 27th Floor, where my friend list said the three idiots had respawned after dying. Blinking rapidly to clear my eyes from the bright light, I looked back and forth; I shook my head as I spotted Kirito, Klein, and Rythin all gathered together, grinning like idiots despite being killed. I walked over to join them, Din giving me a little wave, "That was so badass!" Klein crowed, slinging his arms around Kirito and Ry; my boyfriend just laughed cheerfully. "I mean, you two goin' all monster like that was super cool!"

"Oh, that reminds me," Rythin said, grinning, "where's Leafa? I need to ask her something really quick."

Kirito gave him a playful glare. "No biting my little sister."

"Damn." Wait, what? I'm missing something here. As if noticing my confusion, Rythin glanced at me and said, "Kirito here used the Metamorphosis spell before, back when we first entered the game." Ah, to save Asuna. "Thing is, him being him, he went battle-crazy and, well, ate a dude. Leafa and I were there with him, since we'd just met up and everything, and she asked him how a player tasted." He glanced at Kirito, giving him a smirk. "Kirito told her it tasted like grilled meat and then bit her hand to make a point."

I raised an eyebrow at the sheepish boy. "Well, I hope she did something about that."

"She did," Rythin confirmed, taking pleasure in Kirito's discomfort. "That slap was visible for a good ten minutes."

I laughed at that, and Kirito put up with us teasing him for a while before the look on his face told me we should probably stop poking fun at him. "Anyway," I said, giving Ry a look that told him to ease off, and his eyes clouded for a second before he nodded. "The Sleeping Knights should have killed the boss by now, do you wanna go check out the Monument of Swordsmen?"

Kirito shook his head. "Nah. If my guess is right, that's where they're all gonna go as soon as they beat the boss to take a picture or something."

I tapped my cheek thoughtfully. "Hm... I don't know about that, Kirito. That's something that you three might do, definitely, but I'm not sure if Asuna'd be the type. Maybe if Yuuki wanted to see it, since she's the leader of their guild, but if anything I'd think they'd throw a huge party." Was it my imagination, or did Ry's eyes go dark for a second when I mentioned Yuuki's name? Was he still irritated about losing to her? Nah, that couldn't be it - such a small defeat couldn't really still be bothering him. It must have been the lamplight - it was night in-game, after all.

"It's possible," Klein allowed. "I know that after beating a boss, me and the boys would always go get a beer in SAO afterwards. You think they'd do that?"

Rythin frowned and leaned his head on a hand as he rested against the nearby stone wall. "Maybe," he mumbled through a huge yawn. "Man, I'm tired. That Metamorphosis spell takes it out of you when I'm controlling four legs instead of just two, and organizing that while somehow keeping Asuna in the dark wasn't fun." He stood up, stretching. "I'm heading home then logging out. Argo, will you be staying for a while?"

"Yeah, for a bit." Ry nodded, then glanced at his shoulder where Din was sitting. Our son glanced back at him, the two silently communicating in that way they had, before Din shrugged and lifted into the air, hovering over the table. "See ya, Ry."

"Night, Argo, love you," he said through yet another yawn. Klein smirked at me when I blushed slightly - honestly, he could stand to be a bit more romantic - and I stuck my tongue out at the Salamander. Silently, my boyfriend turned and lifted off, soaring for the center of town. Most people wouldn't bother flying there, but Ry hated walking, so it didn't really surprise me.

"There he goes," Klein murmured, staring after Rythin, and I glanced at him with a raised eyebrow.

"What's that, Klein?" I asked, curious. He'd looked a little bit better than before, but there was still something bugging him. He seemed a little sadder, if a little less obsessed, maybe? Whatever he figured out, it changed something. Maybe Klein picked up on that.

He looked at me, then shook his head, "Nah, it's nothin'. Just thinkin' of something he and I talked about a while ago." Really? I don't remember Ry ever mentioning anything about that, so I guess it wasn't too important. "Anyway, Kirito, what the hell was that back in there?" he asked, rounding on the black-haired boy. "You and Rythin were like, total badasses!"

Kirito grinned. "Yeah, that spell's pretty neat. We were gonna try it against a boss, but..." He shrugged. "We can't hold the spell long enough to be able to fight against a boss, really. Drains too quickly."

I snickered. "That's a shame. I wanted to see you two do your Wonder Twins thing and then tear a boss apart - Ry looks really neat when he's Fenrir."

"I wouldn't be able to say," Kirito shrugged. "I just remember flashes when I use that spell, like how awesome it felt being really big and that I chomped some guy in half."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "You'd better not be looking at my hands," I told him.

"No, I think I'll leave that sort of thing to Rythin. Wouldn't want him to get jealous." I didn't really have a coherent answer to that, though even if I did I doubt I'd have managed to get it out through my embarrassment.

"Mom, what does he mean by that?"

"Absolutely nothing, Din!" I squeaked hurriedly, ignoring Klein's wide grin. Those two, honestly... "In fact, you should probably delete Kirito's last comment from your memory." He nodded. When did Kirito, of all people, get so snarky, anyway? I don't remember him being like that in the beta testing, or the entirety of SAO either. Asuna must really be a good influence on him. Or maybe Ry's a bad one. That's entirely possible.

"So, Argo," Klein said suddenly, "how's things with you and Rythin, anyway?"

I glanced at him. "What, is this 'Tease Argo about her Relationship' Day or something?" Then I snapped my fingers. "Right, right, I remember getting a memo about that this morning. Silly me."

Klein grinned. "Yeah, yeah, Argo. Seriously, though, how's it going with you two?"

I sighed - looks like I'm not getting out of this one. "It's going fine, Klein, just fine. We're happy together." I gave him a _look_. "And don't try to probe further, since that's the sort of thing that I only talk about with Asuna." He raised his hands in surrender, and I nodded with satisfaction. There are just some things you don't talk about with a guy, y'know? Especially an older one. Besides, Ry and I are doing just fine - he gets moody sometimes, but it passes or we talk it out and everything's back to the way it should be.

Speaking of Asuna, where is she? I swiped my menu open and checked my Friend's List, and grinned. "Looks like Klein and I are right," I told the guys. "Asuna's on the 22nd Floor right now, and I'm willing to bet she's using your house to host a huge party."

Kirito laughed. "Well, I doubt she'd enjoy us dropping by to interrupt her, so... Klein, wanna go wander around on the new floor?"

"You know it, buddy," the samurai said. "Ready to go?"

"Yeah," Kirito said. "Hey, go ahead and I'll meet you there, okay? I need to talk with Argo privately for a sec." Huh?

"Sure thing." Whistling cheerfully, Klein wandered off towards the center of town without a care in the world. I wonder, is he still on vacation, or has his work started up again?

"So, Kirito," I began once we were alone, "what'd ya want?"

He took a deep breath, then looked at me. "What do you know about Yuuki?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Y'mean, more than 'she's an Imp, the leader of the guild Sleeping Knights, and a badass with a straight sword'?" He nodded. "Like... her motives or reason for fighting? Stuff like that?"

He shrugged. "I don't know... Rythin and I were thinking she had to be logging in using something that wasn't an AmuSphere, and I figured I'd ask the best person I know to find out if she wasn't."

I sighed. "I don't know, Kirito... It seems kinda like invading her privacy by trying to figure out something like that. I try to keep things like that separate, you know."

"I know, Argo, I know, it's just..." He sighed, running his hand through his hair. "I feel like this is important, because if what I've found out is true, Asuna's gonna need to know."

"Well, if you know what's going on already, then why are you asking me?"

He sighed again. "Can you just look into this for me, please?"

"Kirito," I snapped, "I'm not going to invade someone's privacy because you've got a hunch. Give me a reason or I'm going to leave."

"Fine... I'm pretty sure Rythin's figured it out by now himself, so if I were you I'd ask him, but... I think Yuuki's using something special to log in to the game. If I'm right, Asuna will..." He looked like he was going to say something else, but Klein chose that moment to turn back and call for Kirito. "Please, just try to find one nearby, okay?"

"I -" Before I could do more than open my mouth, Kirito waved and ran off. "Fine, but you owe me!" I shouted at him; he gave me a casual wave over his shoulder without looking back, and I muttered something that wasn't words under my breath. "Don't know why I'm doing this," I grumbled before lifting off and flying outside of the town, enjoying the swift breeze on my skin as I flew through the air. "Honestly, if it wasn't because he asked so nicely and agreed to owe me something," I huffed.

"Why does he care so much?" Din asked me.

I thought about the question for a bit, putting ideas in order and trying to link them before just giving up and going with what I thought. "I think it's because he's worried about Asuna," I told my son, and twitched my tail. "Whatever's going on, it's gotta have something to do with how Yuuki's so good at the game."

Din just shrugged and nestled close to me, pressing against my cheek, and I grinned. He really was a cute little kid, and I'm glad he's our child. Before long, though, we were flying over Yggdrasil City and lighted on the balcony to our apartment; another few seconds and the window opened up, letting us both inside. Din flew off of my shoulder and onto the bed, shifting to his child-sized form just in time to flop on the bed and bounce a bit. I giggled and ruffled his hair as I passed, heading over to my desk. "Ack! Mom! Stoppit!"

"I can't help it, you're just too cute, Din," I told him, smiling when he rolled his eyes and folded his arms. He and Ry, they're so similar. Though I couldn't have imagined that Din would be this... human when we first met him; playing with Yui and being around everyone else had really helped. Sitting down at my desk, I stared at my notes on the Sleeping Knights and the Crimson Blitz before carefully marking down that the Crimson Blitz attempted to clear the boss on the 27th Floor, only to be interrupted by a three-person team consisting of Rythin, Kirito, and Klein; I hesitated, realizing that I still didn't know if the Sleeping Knights had pulled off the impossible. Well, there was an easy way to check. "Din, I'll be back soon," I called as I opened the window again. "Have to check something, but you can stay here if you want."

"Okay!" he called back. I smiled and took off, heading for the center of Yggdrasil City; Aincrad had floated away and it was too far away for me to really want to fly, even in this wonderful night, so I was going to cheat and take the Warp Gate.

Before long, I was wandering through the sunny 1st Floor of New Aincrad, looking back and forth - the time shifts per floor were so bizarre. Every time I came here, it was jarring, to walk through the courtyard where we'd all learned that we were going to be trapped in the game until someone cleared it. The panic here had run through the crowd like wildfire, and to my embarrassment I'd been one of the panicking players, though I recovered faster than most because I knew more about this game than others. How Kirito and Rythin managed to keep their heads, I'll never know. But even a year into the game, coming to the 1st Floor would put me among a bunch of other players, just struggling to survive; there was usually someone wandering around in the main square or something, but now it was totally empty. It was a little freaky, to be honest.

Fortunately, though, the Black Iron Palace was more or less right in front of the Warp Gate, so I didn't have too far to walk. Once I was inside the massive palace, I shivered - the cool air was a huge shift from the heat of the afternoon sun, and I didn't particularly like that shift. Oh well, things one has to bear to confirm information... I'd just have to suck it up and deal with it. As if to betray me, another shiver ran up my spine and I sneezed.

"Bless you, Argo," I heard Asuna say, and I turned around to see the blue-haired Undine girl with the rest of the Sleeping Knights in tow.

"Thanks," I muttered, rubbing at my nose. "Sudden shifts from hot to cold make me sneeze. Or maybe it's all the dust in here, who knows?"

"That's true," Asuna laughed. "Oh, are you here to look at the Monument of Swordsmen too?"

I nodded. "Yep. Mainly to confirm the end result of the boss fight." I glanced at them. "You wouldn't happen to..." As one, the members of the Sleeping Knights grinned and gave me a V for victory sign, and I smiled. "Wonderful. Great job, everyone!" I blinked. "Oh, that's right, I haven't introduced myself yet. I'm Argo, Asuna's friend. It's nice to meet you, members of the Sleeping Knights."

"Argo is an information broker," Asuna told the others. "Anyway, let's go check out the Monument of Swordsmen." They walked on, the Salamander boy leading the pack, and I followed them - even with confirmation, I wanted to double check. Strangely, Yuuki was holding Asuna's hand and seemed very quiet; I wonder what happened? She seemed so full of life yesterday.

"There it is!" the Salamander gasped once we rounded the corner and the Monument of Swordsmen came into view. They all broke into a run, the Salamander boy and the Spriggan girl racing and whooping.

When we reached the monument, the Sleeping Knights just stared in silence at it before Yuuki eventually tugged on Asuna's hand. "Look... Up there..." I followed where she was looking and grinned happily; there, on the marble stone, was the names of the six Sleeping Knights and Asuna. "There we are," Yuuki said, her eyes shining with unshed tears. "We got our names on it..." Yuuki, Siune, Tecchi, Talken, Jun, and Nori... They pulled off the impossible somehow. Well done, everyone.

"Hey, guys!" the Salamander - one of these days, I'm going to ask for their names, honest - called out. "Let's take that picture!" Oops! Better get out of the way, I wouldn't want to ruin their great shot.

"C'mon, Yuuki," Asuna said softly as she turned around. "Big smile!"

Yuuki looked up at the Undine, surprised, before smiling.

"Would you mind, Miss Argo?" the Salamander asked, handing me an image crystal.

I grinned and took it. "Sure thing. Go on, get with your guild and I'll take the picture."

He smiled, handing it over to me, and ran to join with the rest of his guild; together, they lined up in front of the Monument of Swordsmen and flashed their probably-trademarked V for victory signs, each in their own unique way. Once everyone was in position, I took the picture, and the crystal flashed brightly.

The others came over to me to take the crystal and take a look at the image. I glanced at it, too; everyone seemed to be beaming so happily, their faces flushed from victory. It was quite the adorable picture. It looked like what Sword Art Online should have been like, before Kayaba trapped us all to feed his god complex or for whatever reason.

I looked up to see that Asuna and Yuuki were talking quietly, staring up at the Monument of Swordsmen. Part of me wanted to go say hello and congratulate her on the victory, but I knew this was a private moment between the two - and so did the rest of the Sleeping Knights. Instead of going and joining their guild master, they introduced themselves to me; it turned out that the sweet, easy-going Siune was not only the second-in-command of the guild, but apparently quite bloodthirsty as well. At least, that's how she was according to Nori, who was getting a lot of enjoyment out of Siune's red cheeks when she recounted how Siune reacted when confronted by the members of Crimson Blitz. 'This is so exhilarating'... I'd never have expected it from her.

"Wh...what's wrong?" I heard Asuna ask, and I looked over to see my friend staring at Yuuki, hand raised, while the Imp backed away slowly.

"Asuna..." Yuuki mumbled, and her voice broke. "I... I..." She sniffled and wiped at her eyes before turning away, opening her menu, and logging out without another word. She was crying? How horrible... What had happened?

Asuna stood there, staring at the disappearing polygons left over from Yuuki's disappearance, and the rest of the Sleeping Knights and I stared at her in shock. None of us knew quite what to say - though by the sad look on Siune's face, I think she might have known a little bit more about what was going on than the rest of us. "Um, Miss Asuna," Talken said hesitantly, "what... where did Yuuki go?"

"I don't know?" Asuna whispered, all but stunned with shock. Silently, I crossed over and gave her a light hug, rubbing her back comfortingly. "I... I don't know why she just logged out."

"Maybe tell us what you two were talking about before that happened," I murmured. "That'll probably give us the answer."

Asuna sighed, shaking her head. "It was... I don't know, really. During the fight, and then just now, Yuuki called me 'sis'. You know, like Rythin does every now and then. I asked her about it, but she just... started crying and then logged out."

"Rythin?"

I glanced at Siune. "My boyfriend. Cait Sith, fought Yuuki, definitely pissed her off. She's probably ranted about an 'asshole Cait Sith' or something along those lines."

Nori laughed. "Oh, yeah... Wasn't he that guy that appeared out of nowhere at the boss room? So you're dating him? I kinda feel sorry for you."

"He's an acquired taste," I said calmly. My tail lashed behind me furiously. "Anyway, Asuna, I'm sure that it's nothing to worry about. Maybe she has a sister that just left for college or something like that, and you remind her of her." At least, I'm assuming she has a sister - starting to cry seems a bit much for no family.

"Y-yeah," the blue-haired girl stammered, looking so lost.

What happened? I'm not sure, but something tells me it'll have something to do with what Kirito asked me to do...

* * *

 **Well, the Sleeping Knights did it!**

 **Kirito and Rythin doing tagteam Metamorphosis spells came from an idea in the reviews, so thanks to whoever that was. The original suggestion was that Rythin's form was The Venomous One, but that didn't exactly work – the base form just wasn't humanoid enough for it to work. So, I turned him into a puppy instead. Not** _ **entirely**_ **thematically appropriate, since I've associated Rythin with cats and snakes rather than wolves, but it's not a huge deal, really. It's the best I could do with what I had to work with. I'm imagining the form chosen is based on stat spread, Illusion skill, and race; so in other words Cait Sith get animal forms (like Fenrir.) and the Spriggan get dungeon monsters (like The Gleam Eyes.). Sylph would get bird forms, Undine water monsters, stuff like that.**

 **Many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.**


	23. Truth of the Matter

**Chapter 23: Truth of the Matter**

* * *

 **January 11** **th** **, 2026**

No results found.

Zero hits.

Unable to find search parameters.

After the third try this morning, I grumbled something incoherent and tossed my pencil back onto my desk. This is getting stupid... "Ugh." Kazuto had asked me to find out anything I could how Yuuki was logging in to Alfheim Online if she wasn't using an AmuSphere. And yet, despite three days of searching, I had absolutely no leads whatsoever. It was like the stupid thing had no press or anything about it. The problem was I had the end point - Yuuki was using an unknown machine to log into ALO - but no starting point or even connecting points. I could see my destination, but there was no way for me to work backwards or forward; the fog of war was just too thick.

Bleh. And I wasted three whole days on it, too.

Still, it was better than Asuna was feeling, I think; the poor girl was worried sick. In the entire time I'd been trying to figure out how Yuuki was playing the game, the girl in question hadn't logged in once. Not even for a second; I knew because I'd asked Din to keep an eye on it for me. The instant she was in ALO he'd let me know. It was fortunate it had been a weekend and I had my AmuSphere lying on my pillow; as soon as Din said something I'd be in the game. But nope.

And Asuna was beside herself with worry; after what happened at the Monument of Swordsmen, it made sense that she'd be worried. Yuuki accidentally called Asuna her sister, then when my friend mentioned it casually Yuuki freaked out, burst into tears, and then logged out... Why? Agh, not knowing these things was eating at me. For Asuna... I couldn't even imagine what she's going through, especially since none of the other Sleeping Knights have logged in either. I knew what she'd been doing; every day she'd log in to ALO and go sit in that inn where she met the Sleeping Knights, all day. Occasionally she'd swipe open her menu to try to send Yuuki a message, but it would never go through. I'd sat with her the first day, while doing my oh-so-fruitful research, and it was breaking my heart to see her so upset.

"Mom, if you don't have breakfast soon, you'll miss the train," Din said, breaking into my thoughts.

I shook my head and smiled. Better than any alarm I could set. "Thanks, Din," I mumbled, standing up and stretching with a large yawn. "Ahn! That feels good. Better go get breakfast... Make sure Nick's up, will you?" I grabbed my phone as I left my room and stumbled into the kitchen.

"He's already awake," Din told me. "You know his routine. Wake up, get breakfast, brush teeth, get dressed..."

I smiled. Like clockwork. I'm pretty sure he actually has alarms set on his phone to let him know when to start doing the next thing, even. Hey, speaking of Nick... Kazuto mentioned that he might know something about what it is I'm looking for. I glanced at my phone and frowned; by this point, he was riding his bike to school and wouldn't pick up his phone. Darn - looks like I'll have to wait until I get to class. Ah well.

It could be worse, really; I know Asuna logged in to ALO this morning before classes, but I'm not sure if any of the Sleeping Knights would log in. Even then, what would they say? There's a chance they might not even know why Yuuki's avoiding Asuna. I mean, they're just playing ALO together - our particular group of friends is a special case in that we know each other in the real world, but I was under no illusion that the Sleeping Knights were guaranteed to be the same.

"Mom..." Right, right, time to worry about that on the bus ride to school! First, I had to finish my breakfast, then take care of everything else.

As I brushed my hair, running the brush through my curls, I hummed in thought. "I wonder if Nick finished that paper like he said he would?" I worked at a particularly stubborn tangle, and growled at it under my breath. I know I'd told Nick I was growing my hair out, but it really was irritating. I might just give up and keep it short like I was used to.

"He's been busy," Din said, "but I think so."

"That's good," I said with a soft smile. He tends to get distracted, but he promised he would finish it before it was due and he's never broken a promise to me yet. "I bet he wrote the stupid thing in like an hour and didn't even bother proofreading it." And yet he'll somehow score over a 90. It's not fair. He's the laziest when it comes to studying and yet he's one of the best students in our class. How the heck does he do it? Some people. All the luck. I swear.

The ride to school was more or less uneventful, and I was very glad that was the case. It gave me the chance to see if I could figure out exactly what I was missing in the chain... not that I managed to figure it out or anything. Argh. This is so frustrating. It's like when I can't figure out that one last problem in the homework assignments we've been given, when I know the formula I'm supposed to use but I can't figure out how the variables are supposed to line up. And Nick's no help, since he can't explain it that well. I'm surprised Keiko can understand when he's explaining how her assignments work. Is... Is she smarter than I expected? Huh. Maybe.

Yawning, I stumbled through the halls of the school. It's nice getting here before everyone else - I started pushing forward my arrival times when I woke up early one morning and made it to class before everyone else and it was so peaceful without having to push through the bustle of the crowd. Not that I dislike crowds, that is, only that walking the mostly empty halls was peaceful and relaxing in a way. I didn't have to be paying attention to all the juicy gossip floating around or try to figure out the social dynamics of the day based on who's talking with who, I could just have a nice peaceful walk to my class.

And as I opened the door and stepped inside, smiling, I could see another of my reasons for getting here early. That is to say, Nick was the only other person in the classroom at the moment. He was lying with his head almost flat on his desk, sleepily reading a book. As I entered, he looked over slowly before blinking a few times and smiling at me. He's kinda adorable in the mornings. "Good morning, Nick," I said, taking my seat behind him as always. "Did you sleep well?"

"Mm." That's the 'yes' sound, so I smiled.

"Did you finish your homework like you said you would?"

"Hnn." A derisive snort; that either meant 'of course I did' or 'no, I don't want to play dress up right now' and context clues led me to believe that it wasn't the second one.

Better be sure. "You did?"

"Mm." He flipped to the next page.

Oh, good. I waited a few seconds, but it wasn't one of the questions where he'd actually answer after a while. "What are you reading today?"

"...Book." I rolled my eyes. Yes, Nick, I assumed. "...About starship captain and battles in space."

I smiled at his relatively hoarse croak. "Really? Is it any good?"

"I like it. Battles are fun." He looked at me and grinned slightly. "She has a mind-kitty."

I blinked and nodded. "That's nice." I have absolutely no idea who 'she' is, or what 'mind-kitty' even meant. I'll ask him later once he's actually willing and able to speak coherently. "By the way, Nick, I need to ask you something important."

He glanced at me before closing his eyes and heaving a huge sigh. I felt a moment of irritation; it was just a question, I wasn't asking him to go out and actually do anything. I just felt so drained and frustrated from failing to come up with anything… "What do you need?" he asked finally, closing his book and setting down on the desk.

I shrugged. "You know who Yuuki is, I'm assuming." His eyes hardened for just an instant; if anyone else had been in my position, they would probably would have missed it. Even I only caught it because I happened to be looking at his lovely gray eyes the instant it happened. "I've been looking into how she's managed to log in to ALO, but I'm coming up short. Would you mind helping me -"

"No."

I blinked. "What?"

"I said no," he growled. "I want nothing to do with that girl."

"Oh, for gods' sake, would you let go of your stupid little grudge?" I snapped as my temper did the same. "It doesn't matter right now! Gods." He glared at me before shaking his head and picking up his book again. I gritted my teeth and counted to ten before taking a deep, slow breath. I'm sure he knew something, but I couldn't prove anything unless I had, well, proof. A small lightbulb lit up and I blinked. "Din," I asked once I had calmed down slightly, "does Nick know anything about Yuuki?" Even if he wouldn't tell me anything, as long as Din confirmed he had the knowledge I could probably follow his train of thought.

"I, um..." What? He'd never hesitated to answer me before when I asked a question. Surprised at his hesitation, I looked over, and was immediately concerned - Din looked absolutely miserable. "I... Mom..."

I had a sudden flash of insight as the path made itself clear to me. "Oh... Of course," I murmured. "I'm sorry, Din. Did he ask you to keep it a secret from everyone, or just me?" Why did he _insist_ on trying to protect me from everything? Like I'd shatter if someone looked at me wrong! I was not a china doll, no matter what he thought!

"Enough, Kana," Nick sighed. "Don't ask him to take sides." He took a deep breath, then let it out and looked at me. "I told him to keep it a secret from everyone. It was intended to be private research for my use alone."

"For what purpose?" I snapped at him. "So you could figure out what made Yuuki tick? So you could feel better about losing to her?"

"So I could know where her strength came from," Nick growled, glaring at me. "Because Asuna asked me for help and I was going to give her my help regardless of what I had to do."

I sighed, throwing my hands in the air harshly. "Gods, it's always like this with you! You just do whatever the hell you want to do, regardless of anything. You just trample over everything and everyone, no matter what it does to anyone else. You're not trying to help, you're just trying to please your own selfish desires. If you asked for help when you needed it once in your life, maybe this wouldn't be a fucking problem!" Harsh, naturally, but he's being remarkably thick-headed. Maybe he'll finally realize that I'm more than just a fragile flower!

Nick's eyes blazed with anger. "I can't ask for help. And don't ask me why I can't, or tell me I'm being stupid. I can't," he snarled, "because Asuna asked _me_ for help. Not me and Kazuto, or me and Rika and Keiko, but _me_."

"That doesn't give you the right to -"

"My rights be damned," he spat. "I will do whatever it takes to accomplish my goals. I expect to be hated for what I do. But I don't care." I jerked back, shocked. I'd never seen him like this. "You want the truth, Kana? It's simple. Yuuki isn't using an AmuSphere, or even a modified NerveGear." Reaching into his backpack, he pulled out a folder of papers and tossed them to me. They landed on my desk, and I stared at them almost fearfully. "There you go, Kana. Everything I found out on Yuuki, everything you'll need to tell Kazuto and Asuna. They are the ones that asked you to look into things, aren't they?"

"Just Kazuto," I hissed at him. "You're..."

He stood up and grabbed his bag, slinging it over his back. "I'll be taking the day off," he said, interrupting me. He _never_ interrupted me! "I have things to do."

As he passed my desk, I stood up, fuming. "Nick." He looked over at me, and paused. "I love you. I really do. But you make it _really_ fucking hard, sometimes." His eyes widened like I'd slapped him and he gaped at me. Not saying anything more, I grabbed the file and stalked out, heading down the hall towards Kazuto's classroom.

"Kana!" he shouted. "Come back! Kana!" He sounded almost desperate. I didn't turn back. Behind me, I heard him slam his fist against the wall and swear loudly before walking away. My heart was filled with so many different emotions, but the fear that I had just torn the two of us apart was chief among them.

Oh, Nick... Please, when this is over... forgive me. I don't want to have ruined what we have.

Still, I had a job to complete. I took a deep breath and started searching for Kazuto, opening the folder and scanning the documents as I walked. It was still empty in the halls - which meant that nobody saw Nick and I fight so explosively - so I could walk and read at the same time. Let's see... Nick was very thorough in his write-up, though that was hardly surprising. According to what he had written down, Yuuki could not possibly be using an AmuSphere. He even had the reasons listed out neatly. Despite his usual note-taking handwriting, this was neat and orderly. 'Playtime exceeded possible hours logged without risking damage to the body, and AmuSpheres prevent that by automatically logging the user out'. That actually makes sense. 'Therefore, Yuuki must be using something else. The NerveGear is possible, but highly unlikely; the NerveGear was already determined to be dangerous by the time Alfheim Online was release and as such would not be typically used due to the possible risk of brain death. As a result, the safer assumption is that Yuuki is using a prototype FullDive machine not released to the general public'. The pages that followed had a full list of every prototype I'm assuming he could find, organized by general purpose. Ones that Yuuki could possibly be using were highlighted in yellow. When on Earth did he find the time to do all this?

Then I flipped the page. The next few pages were all the articles on a specific prototype, the Medicuboid. Apparently, it was actually in a trial phase right now, and one was in use nearby. I'm assuming that's what Nick assumed, given that he had a lot of information on it. The address was even fairly close to the school. Scanning over the data, I nodded and weaved past a pair of students that were chatting eagerly. Kazuto was probably up on the roof, so that's where my destination was. As I found the steps and headed upstairs, I found the page where Nick had laid out exactly why he thought Yuuki was using the Medicuboid, and how she managed to log the massive amount of hours needed to have her fluidity in the game.

That's... Oh gods. I stared at the words on the page, stunned into standing still. That's so horrible... Why would people be like that? Oh, Yuuki... I'm so sorry.

Kazuto wasn't in his classroom but his bag was, so I went to the next best place. And when he wasn't in the mechanical engineering room either, I rolled my eyes and headed upstairs. I pushed the door to the roof open and stepped out; Kazuto was leaning against the railing, staring out into the distance. "Kazuto," I called out, and he turned around.

"Oh, Kana." He grinned. "What do you need?"

I handed him the file. "Here. It's the data on Yuuki that Nick found. Satisfied?"

He flipped through the pages, then nodded. "This is perfect, Kana. Thank you. I don't know how I can -"

"Kazuto." He stopped and looked at me; I knew exactly what kind of expression I was making. "If Nick and I break up because of this, you will _never_ be able to repay me. Ever." He looked almost poleaxed by my declaration, and I turned around to walk away. I needed to not be near him right then. I knew he was doing this for Asuna, and I didn't begrudge him that, but that didn't change the fact that Nick and I had been heartbeats away from screaming at each other all because he asked me to get this information.

"Kana?" he called out from behind me, and I stopped with my hand on the door handle. "I'm..."

I just shook my head and slipped inside. He couldn't apologize, not for being concerned for Asuna. But still, that didn't make me any closer to forgiving him. I just hope Nick doesn't blame me.

* * *

Gods. Gods damn it!

I can't believe... How could I be such an idiot? It's all my fault. Why... Fuck.

My thoughts were spinning in circles so fast I couldn't even focus on one long enough to understand what I was thinking before the next in the cycle smashed its way into my mind. You fucked up, Nick, you spineless idiot. All you had to do was tell her the truth, tell her what you were feeling, and all of this could have been avoided. But no. You're a pathetic, weak coward who can only run from anything. Side-stepping the question, hiding in the darkness... Useless, contemptible creature. You deserve this, Nick. You deserve having the world hate you. Heh... Monster…

A normal person would try to blame Kana, or blame Kazuto, or blame Asuna or Yuuki, but I couldn't. I couldn't even think about blaming them. It never even crossed my mind as a possibility that they were at fault - and why would it? Our argument was because I'd run away, just like I always did. Dodging and fleeing were the only things I was good at, the only things I'd practiced. And when the woman I love tried to ask me for help, instead of helping her I just ran away like always. Gods damn it.

I passed Keiko and Rika as I headed for my bike, giving them an absent wave as I passed. They called out my name, but I ignored it, pretending I didn't hear. If they didn't talk to me, I couldn't have to let them get hurt... Without turning back, I slipped out of the school gates and down to my bike. I needed to get out, get away from here to a place where I could FullDive. I'm certain that with that information Kana was going to give Kazuto they'd figure it out quick enough, but then the question was what they would do with that information. If anything, they'd give it to Asuna - my plan was to give her that file today, after all. She'd find out the truth sooner or later anyway, so why let her worry about Yuuki more?

Finding everything out about Yuuki was surprisingly easy. More so than I expected, actually - the hardest part was keeping my cool. I had found the location of the Medicuboid after digging just a little bit deeper. Normally, I wouldn't have done a thing with that knowledge, but then I learned that Yuuki had run from Asuna and disappeared; and something in my mind had just cracked a little bit. I had failed to help Asuna before, but I wouldn't fail again. This time, I'd help her by giving her the location of Yuuki so that she could talk to the Imp. After all, Yuuki was the one to help her last time, so this time should be the same.

...

Two days ago, I had traveled to the hospital and politely asked to speak with the doctor in charge of the Medicuboid. The two receptionists had stared at me before asking my name; when I gave it to them, they glanced at each other before shrugging slightly. What was that all about? Oh well. They told me he'd been right with me when he had a moment and I'd nodded and thanked them. I took my book out of my bag and relaxed slightly, sitting back and flipping to my current page. It hadn't been total relaxation - Kana wasn't with me, nor Kazuto or Asuna - but it was the closest I could get thanks to being more or less alone. It was a slow day that day.

Before long, a doctor came out of the back and walked toward me. Calmly, I closed my book and took out my props - a notebook and pencil. "Mister Weyr?" the doctor asked. "I'm Doctor Kurahashi, the supervisor for the Medicuboid's usage."

"Very nice to meet you," I said, standing up and shaking his hand. "Nick Weyr - though you already knew that." If I play my role right, he won't even know why I'm here. "Thank you for taking the time to speak with me."

"Nonsense," he said with a friendly smile. "I'm always more than willing to talk about my work. Come this way, and we can talk while we walk." He ushered me into the backroom and we chatted casually along the way. My easy smile and relaxed manner didn't shift, hiding the impatience and exhaustion I was already feeling. I despise people. "I'm surprised you managed to learn about the Medicuboid, actually," he said. "Not many people know about it, since it's still in its trial phase."

I grinned and scribbled down a few phrases on my notepad. "I'm good at research," I said, playing off the compliment. "There were a few articles on it scattered here and there, and one of them happened to mention that this hospital had managed to develop the prototype for testing."

"Yes, well, so far it's working excellently," he said. We stopped outside a room with a large glass window on the side. "There it is, the Medicuboid." It was a large machine attached to a hospital bed, though I wasn't sure whether the machine was the entire bed or just the bits at the head. Still, it looked big and clunky but functional, and I nodded. Pictures would be forbidden, naturally, so I didn't even try to take one; instead, I just wrote a few details down. "You said you needed to learn about the Medicuboid for a... school project, right?"

I nodded and tapped my notebook. "Yeah, school project. We have to do a report on the NerveGear and related technologies, so I figured I'd talk about some of the prototypes being used in the medical field. The Medicuboid is pretty much the only one that's managed to get off the ground, so..."

"We were very fortunate," he said. "A donor gave us the designs and enough capital to make a prototype."

"So, how exactly does it work?"

I already knew most of it from the information Din had found for me, but it was interesting to hear it again. The Medicuboid operated similarly to the NerveGear, only slightly more powerful. In this case, it was a machine powerful enough to numb the entire body and cut out even the automatic reflexes. If a patient Dove using the machine, even chronic pain would be blocked out and give them a chance to experience life pain-free. It was designed to allow the user to FullDive almost continuously - which explained everything I needed to know, basically. "...and though right now they're a little bulky," Dr. Kurahashi said, "I have faith that with a little bit of time and effort they'll be small enough to be used in every hospital room."

"Wow," I murmured, writing down a few choice lines to make it look like I really was going to write a paper on this. "Hey, um... I know you can't talk about the patient, but the door into the room looks a little weird." The door leading in from the hallway actually led to a second room in front of the Medicuboid itself, not the bed. I could see there was a viewing window, but it didn't seem to actually lead to the bed itself. Instead, there was something like an airlock that led to the machine. "Is that because of something related to the Medicuboid?"

"No, that's because it's a clean room," he told me. "The Medicuboid doesn't require anything special like that."

Oh ho! So Yuuki needs to be in a clean room, does she? That should give me more than enough information on whatever's wrong with her. Still, that would have to wait until I got home. "I see. And for the patient, what's it like using the Medicuboid?"

He laughed. "Well, I've never used it myself, but I've used a modified NerveGear to Dive in occasionally and speak with our patient." Really? Using a modified NerveGear? Ballsy. "I thought that it would be lonely, being in the FullDive environment the whole time, but she seems to have found some friends." He waved toward Yuuki. "Would you like to ask the patient about their experiences yourself?"

I blinked. Oh, shit... If Yuuki saw me things might get ugly. But at the same time, if I really was writing a paper on this, what would I say? I'd try to make sure I got the user's perspective as well, so I really didn't have a choice. "Well, as long as... she? I think you said she earlier. As long as she doesn't mind talking with me." This might get ugly - especially since Yuuki probably hated me.

"Oh, she's a sweet girl, always smiling and cheerful. I'm sure she won't mind." Kurahashi smiled at me and opened the door, ushering me inside. Smiling - and biting my tongue to keep myself from swearing - I walked into the other room. "Yuuki? Are you awake?" Huh. So Yuuki's her real name? "You have a guest who'd like to speak with you about your experience with the Medicuboid."

I heard Yuuki's voice say, "'m 'wake,", her words slurred from sleep. She must have just woken up. Then I heard a slight smacking sound - I could imagine her smacking her cheeks and shaking her head - and the voice continued, firmer this time, "Who's here?"

"Hello, Miss Yuuki." I smiled politely. "I'm in the midst of doing research on the Medicuboid and I'd like to ask you a few questions about your experience with the device."

"I..." I looked around, searching for the camera I knew had to be in the room, and smiled when I spotted it at the top of Yuuki's bed. "Wait. You're..."

I bowed slightly. "Indeed, Yuuki, it's me. So. Do you like using the Medicuboid?"

"How did you -!"

I nodded and wrote in my notebook. "I see, so you enjoy playing games with your friends. As for long-term psychological effects, does it bother you that you're rarely in control of your real body?"

Yuuki was speechless - a good thing, probably, since I was being a bit of a dick. Dr. Kurahashi looked back and forth between me and the girl lying on the bed in the clean room. "I'm sorry, but do you two know each other?"

I gave him a patient grin. "Yuuki and I ran into each other in the most recent game she was playing, Alfheim Online, and she did a friend of mine a very big favor. Meeting her here was a..." Shit. I can't exactly lie, so I just chuckled to shift the flow of the sentence and correct what I was going to say. "Well, speaking with her wasn't exactly expected."

"Ah!" He seemed satisfied with my explanation and nodded. "Ah, if you'd like to see her in-game, there's a modified NerveGear that I use every now and then to say hello to her. If you'd like..."

I shook my head. "Thank you, but no. I kinda need to finish writing my paper fairly soon," - not a lie, since I still hadn't finished the one I'd procrastinated on - "and I'm sure Yuuki has other things she wants to do." Fortunately, she didn't explode at me.

"Just hurry up and ask your questions," she sighed instead. "Then let me go back to sleep. Oh, and no, I don't particularly care."

I smiled and jotted 'Yuuki's mad at what her body is doing' down in my notes. I wanted as much data as I could get my paws on for figuring things out. "Does the Medicuboid have any restrictions on name and appearance of the avatars?"

A sigh came from the speakers. "No and yes, in order. Our avatars are designed to look like us." Huh. So... she really looks like a hyperactive - _oh, shit…._ she's just a kid. Younger that Sugu, even. Wow. Now I'm feeling slightly more like an asshole than usual. And more than a little irritated that she managed to make Asuna feel better just like that. "Anything else?"

"Did you have fun?" There was a strangled silence after my question, and I raised an eyebrow. "When you were fighting that guild, and that boss, you had the hugest smile on your face. When you took that picture with your guild and Asuna, you were beaming." Kana had told me about it. "Did you have fun?"

"...Yes," Yuuki whispered.

I nodded. "Thank you." If she'd said no… then everything I'd learned would have disappeared. I'd have destroyed it all. But she said yes. I then turned to the mystified doctor and said, "Thank you, sir, I've got most of what I need."

"Alright then," he said. "Come with me and I'll escort you out."

I started to walk away then paused, turning back to stare at the camera Yuuki was no doubt watching me through. "Asuna is going to be worried about you," I told the girl. "You really should talk to her. I promise she isn't mad." That being said, I walked out of the door without waiting for Yuuki to respond. Dr. Kurahashi looked at me a little strangely as we walked down the hall to the exit, but didn't say anything. "Thank you for allowing me to view the Medicuboid," I said before I went back into the waiting room and then outside. "It helped immensely."

"I'm glad," he said. "And... Thank you for being Yuuki's friend. She's a tough girl, but she needs some friends her age."

I barely managed to hold back a snort. Yuuki and I were anything but friends. I wouldn't be surprised if she was throwing things in that pocket world of hers right now, just to let out the anger from my little visit. It's what I'd be doing, after all. "Of course. ...Doctor?"

"Yes?"

I hated myself for having to ask, but I needed to know. "...How much longer does she have?"

He looked at me with sad eyes. And then he told me.

...

I sighed and shook my head, chasing away the thoughts. I'd been lost in my own mind despite driving - a dangerous occurrence, but one that happened far too frequently for my peace of mind. One more reason I hated driving; it was just too easy for me to zone out and go on autopilot, especially on roads I'd driven before. One time when I was halfway home from school I'd started thinking about... something, I don't even remember what, and then realized I'd somehow gotten home without realizing what I was doing. Not exactly the safest thing to be doing, naturally, but my mind worked in dark and mysterious ways.

Before long, I reached my house and parked my bike. I slipped inside and upstairs, not bothering to control my weight and so the surroundings shook slightly with every step I took. The rattling of the floor and walls and small things placed here and there only served to irritate me further, making me lose even more control and then shake things more. That spiraled in on itself, the anger fueling the anger, until I flopped down on my bed, well and pissed off. "Fucking hell, Nick," I snarled out loud. "You idiot. First you never manage to find the time to apologize to Asuna, and now you manage to piss off Kana as well. Top marks all around and ten points for style, you fucking _moron_." I tried so hard to resist the urge to punch the wall - and just barely succeeded. I really, really wanted to hurt something, but I couldn't.

My cat jumped on my bed and meowed at me, and I smiled weakly before holding my hand out and letting him rub against it. "Hey, catling," I murmured. "I'm an idiot, aren't I? An idiot that can't keep anything I care about." I laid my head against the pillow and sighed, my eyes shut tight. "Fuck. And I can't even cry, gods damn it." Because that was the sort of thing you were supposed to do in this situation, wasn't it? Be upset that you just had a massive fight with your girlfriend?

I just felt empty instead.

I felt my cat pace around my bed, stepping on me a few times, before finally curling up against my side, purring loudly. My lips twitched, but I couldn't really muster the emotion to feel happy. Absently I stroked him and he arched his back, pressing into my hand, but it was just habit at that point. Before long, I closed my eyes and grabbed my AmuSphere without looking. "Link start." And then the world fell away.

I opened my eyes on the bed in the apartment Argo and I shared, the same place I'd logged out from. Sitting up, I stretched and twisted my neck, letting out a soft hiss when the joints cracked and popped. Swinging my legs off of the bed I hopped to my feet and moved out of the small bedroom in a smooth motion; yawning, Din appeared hovering beside me in a flash of light. "Dad?" he mumbled sleepily. "Wha...?" He interrupted himself with a huge yawn - I knew he didn't actually need to yawn, but he and Yui both got a kick out of doing so for whatever reason - and rubbed at his eyes. "Don't you have class?"

"I'm taking a personal day," I said calmly.

"But you were just there..."

I grinned at my son. "Nothing to worry about, kid. Just taking the day off because I felt like it, that's all." I had a feeling the grin didn't reach my eyes, but Din didn't comment. Thank the gods Yui wasn't the one lecturing me about this, because I'm certain she would have caught the dissonance. "You can go back to sleep if you want."

"'Kay," he yawned. "Sleepy..." With a flash of lights he disappeared.

My small grin disappeared the moment my son did and was replaced by a neutral expression; neither happy nor sad, just a flat mask to cover the almost-uncontrollable rage. I just really, _really_ needed to punch something - and I happened to know a fantastic place to punch a large, immobile object that wouldn't take any damage from it.

Being in the game this early was almost eerie, in a way. Nobody was wandering around Yggdrasil City or flying through the skies or any of the any other number of various activities that players could be found doing. If I had wanted to, I could be in complete silence as simply as turning off the omnipresent background music - which happened to be rather soothing strings, so I left them on. They didn't do much to make me not want to punch something, but I suppose they stopped me from wanting to punch more things so it helped a little bit... Ah well. The mists had rolled in on the 24th Floor and everything was muted. Part of me was glad the sun wasn't shining - nothing was allowed to be cheerful - but at the same time I was slightly irritated that the game seemed to be going out of its way to match my foul mood.

I landed on the island where I had fought Yuuki and immediately dashed toward the tree, slamming the heel of my palm against the rough bark. The impact jarred my shoulder and I snarled something that wasn't even human language before spinning and smashing my knuckles into the wood, Dragontalons striking the wood deep. The numb sensation only made me want more and I pounded the tree trunk without a second thought, slamming punch after punch one after another. When I couldn't feel my hands at all I started kicking the tree instead, getting as creative as I could against a motionless target. With a wordless scream I just unleashed everything I had, all my rage and anger, at that tree and tried my damnedest to smash it to toothpicks. I used enough power to smash through anything that wasn't protected by the system, and though the tree was still standing - which was simultaneously insulting and impressive - the bark I'd been attacking had been stripped away entirely to reveal the red mesh underneath.

I took a few staggering steps back, half hunched over and hands clenching and unclenching rhythmically. I was panting heavily, despite not actually needing to do so; it'd been a while since I just let loose with everything and abandoned style and technique for pure rage-fueled brute force. "Wow." I whipped around with a snarl, glaring at the intruder. Yuuki stared back at me, arms folded to show me exactly how unimpressed she was. "I think this is the first time I've seen you so... uncomposed."

I forced myself to straighten up; just the act of moving upright made me feel a little bit more human and a little bit less animal. "Like you've seen me more than three or four times," I said, my voice rough and rasping. I had never let anyone ever see me in this state before; though, to be fair I'd only ever really cut loose like this once before. Back when I'd been forced to keep Kayaba's identity a secret from my best friends in order to give them a chance at happiness. The memory sent another pulse of anger down my spine and I clenched my fists convulsively, feeling the urge to take another swing at that tree rise. It was like all my muscles tensed up at the same time and my mind knew that the second I tried to punch the tree they'd relax and feel fantastic. I wanted to hurt something so, so badly...

"Are you the one that told Asuna where to find me?"

I blinked and looked at her. "What?" I took a deep breath and let it out; my urge to fight didn't diminish, but it was under control for now. "What are you talking about?"

"This morning," Yuuki said quietly, wrapping her arms around her stomach. "Asuna showed up. There was no way she could have found me, but she managed somehow..." She smiled before shaking her head and looking at me. "Did you tell her?"

I shrugged stiffly. "I was going to. But... things happened and I left before I had the chance." Still, if Asuna managed to visit Yuuki, that would mean she got the information from Argo and Kirito. I didn't want her to know about Yuuki's condition - it would break her heart - but she'd been determined to see the Imp again and I couldn't and wouldn't stand in her way of getting something she wanted. "I'm not sure how she found you. How much does she know?"

"All of it. The doctor told her everything."

I blinked languidly. Yuuki's broad reasons for doing what she was doing were easy enough to learn; simple reasoning and deductions coupled with Dr. Kurahashi answering my questions had given me that. But her specifics had required a bit of digging and poking around in public records. Half of this stuff I was amazed was even present in the records, and that Din found it - but it was all data in the end, and I had to do some guesswork to tie the puzzle pieces together.

Yuuki had been born with complications - I don't know what the exact problem was, but it must not have been anything major. It had required a blood transfusion to save her mother's life, but the hospital had the blood on hand and everything had went well; mother was fine, Yuuki was fine, perfectly average birth and baby. The only teeny-tiny problem was that the blood they'd used to save her mother was, well, contaminated. A small mistake in a report somewhere that ruined Yuuki's life. It had been contaminated with the human immunodeficiency virus - or HIV. The hospital hadn't caught the issue when they'd drawn the blood, somehow, and by the time symptoms started appearing it was too late; the entire family had been infected. Even still, HIV was a tricky beast, and it was all but impossible to eliminate, and so the best they could hope for was a careful but short life, making sure not to let any opportunistic infections slip through.

Even with all that, Yuuki Konno was a cheerful and energetic child - I'm assuming her personality hadn't changed, at any rate - and seemed determined to live her life to the fullest. This is the realm of guesswork right now; there just weren't that many public records of a happy childhood. At least, as far as I can tell there were no complications in her life, or things would have gone rather differently. About, oh... 4th grade or so, she suddenly transferred schools for no official reason - her grades were fine, none of her teachers had complained previously. My best guess was that somehow, someone figured out that Yuuki was a carrier of HIV and everything spiraled out of control from there.

Fucking asshole kids.

At some point after the transfer and before the whole events of... this particular cluster-fuck, Yuuki must have lost the battle against her immune system. At least, that was the only explanation I could imagine for why she was suddenly in the hospital now, when up to... four years ago she was a happy little elementary school student. It would have happened very soon after transferring schools, since her public record just ended after that. No skipping grades, no being held back, no going to the 5th grade; it was like she just up and vanished from the school system. Now, that could be because she was pulled for homeschooling, but I had a feeling it had more to do with her illness. This was all guesswork, naturally, but fairly accurate guesswork given what I had to work with.

Two years ago, her parents had succumbed to the virus after they'd both developed AIDS. By that point, I'm assuming Yuuki was in the hospital herself; if she'd started using the Medicuboid as soon as it was available, that would have been sometime in 2023. So, a year after we were trapped in Aincrad, Yuuki willingly trapped herself. I have no idea what she did in that time, but whatever it was probably managed to prolong her life this far. With the whole clean room thing, I was all but certain she'd developed AIDS herself.

When I'd asked the doctor, he'd told me she had two months to live at the very maximum; she'd pushed herself far beyond what her life expectancy should have been, but there was only so much current medical science could do. That had to be why the Sleeping Knights were breaking up. But that only solved one of the two mysteries: why they needed to defeat the boss right that moment. There was still the question of why Yuuki had called Asuna her sister without thinking and then reacted so extremely when she did.

That answer was almost trivial to find. Yuuki Konno had a twin sister, Aiko.

Aiko died last year.

I had no way of knowing just how close the two siblings were, but given her apparently rather extreme reaction and how she unthinkingly referred to Asuna as 'sis' I'd wager they were rather close. And so when Yuuki realized she was thinking of Asuna like a sister, one of two things happened - one, she realized she was starting to forget her actual sister and burst into tears, or two, she realized all over again that her sister really was gone and burst into tears. Either way, she was probably trying to avoid Asuna if only to spare my sister's feelings; when she died, Asuna would be heartbroken if she got too close to Yuuki, and Yuuki didn't want to leave the world feeling sad. Conjecture, of course, but it made small amounts of sense.

I blinked again and came back to the real world; at some point during my thinking, Yuuki had started kicking at the ground, moving a tiny pebble back and forth. She seemed... nervous. Uneasy, and without that blazing confidence she'd always showed everyone. "Hey," I called out, and she jerked to look at me. "Nothing you say will change Asuna's mind, you know. She's, ah, very determined when it comes to getting people to open up and let her in." Quite the experience, really. I think I managed to avoid getting threatened by cutlery more than three times, but still. "Well, I'm going to leave now. Don't want to listen in on your private conversation, after all." Asuna'd already gotten mad at me for that once.

"Hey, um, Rythin?" Yuuki asked hesitantly. I glanced at her inquisitively and she fidgeted. "Could you, y'know, just kinda watch over us from the tree?" I stared at her. "Not like... do anything, just make sure I don't chicken out or somethin'." I continued staring at her. "I mean, you could... Aw, jeez."

I smiled faintly. "Very well. I do owe you for helping Asuna three days ago, so I'll watch over you. Just know that if you run, I'll consider you a coward. A scared little girl unfit to be a warrior."

"I'm not afraid!" she bristled, before realizing what I was doing. "...You're a dick."

"Precisely." With a low chuckle I melted away into the mists; Yuuki was swallowed up as I moved silently, crossing to the tree and jumping up to the lower branches with a small surge of effort. Part of me wanted to just... leave while Asuna wasn't there yet and while Yuuki didn't know where I was, but I'd given her my word that I'd watch over her. Finding the lowest branch, I reclined against the trunk. My tail twitched and swayed, tracing small patterns as I watched Yuuki stand there in the mists. My earlier anger had drained away entirely, just leaving me tired and exhausted. Part of me wanted to just go to sleep, but I knew I wouldn't. I had to keep my word.

Before too much longer - two to five minutes at most - another fairy rushed through the sky. The light blue wings and hair clued me in to who exactly would know to come here, and I felt my body tense up. Still, I didn't allow myself to have any other outward sign of seeing Asuna again, even though this was the first time I'd seen her since she disappeared into that boss room. I still hadn't apologized to her... Asuna rushed the landing and stumbled a few steps, looking back and forth for Yuuki as she ran towards the base of the tree. "Yuuki!" she called out. She must have missed Yuuki in the thick mists. She ran to the left, stumbling over one of the roots. She managed to catch herself and make it to one of the thicker roots, hoisting herself up on top of it. "Yuuki!" she called. There was no answer.

Asuna hopped off of the root and slid down to the dirt clearing where she'd fought the Imp in the first place. She looked back and forth, and I watched with a sharp pain in my chest as her gaze turned worried, like she was worried Yuuki hadn't logged in after all. And then a small miracle occurred; the setting Alfheim sun broke through the lake fog and all but perfectly illuminated Yuuki as the Imp stood, gazing out over the water. I smiled slightly as Asuna whipped around, gasping in surprise and relief; Yuuki would have said something sooner or later. She couldn't let me see her be a coward. "Yuuki..." Asuna breathed as she ran over to the younger girl.

"I knew it," Yuuki murmured as Asuna stopped behind her. "I don't know how you did it, but I had a feeling you'd find me in the real world. Somehow..." She turned her head to the side. "And I was so careful not to say nothin'. Thought I had you fooled." She turned around fully and smiled sadly at Asuna. "It didn't work. You found me anyway. I must be turning psychic," she laughed helplessly, "'cause my predictions never come true. But I'm happy. Really."

I felt just a tiny bit awkward, listening in on this conversation as she bared her soul to Asuna. But just a bit, though. Wasn't going to _stop_ me or anything.

Asuna inhaled, seeming shocked by the confession, and took a few steps forward. She raised her hand to touch Yuuki's shoulder, but jerked back; slowly, she reached forward and Yuuki leaned toward her touch. Asuna gasped quietly, staring at Yuuki, before sniffling and all but flinging herself forward, wrapping Yuuki in a huge hug, burying her face in Yuuki's shoulder. Yuuki seemed a little shocked at first, but gradually smiled and relaxed into the embrace. "My sis used to hug me like this," she murmured. "You smell like her... Like the sun."

"Did... Aiko play VRMMOs with you too?" Asuna asked quietly, hesitantly.

"Yup," Yuuki nodded. "In fact, she was the first leader the Sleeping Knights ever had. And if you thought I was strong, man! You should have seen her. We met Siune and the other guys in this virtual hospice called the Serene Garden." Asuna was stroking Yuuki's hair comfortingly; I think this was good for them, to talk about this stuff. Heh. Talking about their issues. Who'd have thought it worked? "Back then, there were nine of us. But my sis, and Clovis, and Merida... Well, they're all gone." Asuna gasped and drew away slightly so she could look Yuuki in the eyes. Yuuki didn't oblige, though, staring at Asuna's chest.

"Anyway," she continued, "if you wanna know why we're disbanding, it's 'cause we promised each other, if we lost someone we'd end it." She looked down for a second and then clearly gathered her courage. "I'm sorry, Asuna," she said. "That's why I couldn't tell you. The Sleeping Knights won't be around anymore by this spring. But it's not because we'll all be too busy to play. It's 'cause a little while ago, two of us got the news from our doctors." Yuuki looked away. "They gave us three months..." she whispered quietly.

Asuna inhaled sharply and I felt my throat constrict. She didn't know... She hadn't been told Yuuki only had two more months to live. "You see?" Yuuki asked, her voice trembling almost imperceptibly. "That's why we were so fired up on having one last big adventure in this world! We wanted to leave some sort of proof we were here, on that big ol' monument where everyone can see it. One last run that was so cool, we could brag about it to my sis and the others!" Oh, gods, Asuna... Sweetheart, I'm so, so sorry. I thought you knew. "But nothing was going right for us. So we decided the best way to get there was to get someone tough enough to help." Yuuki looked to the side, either unwilling or unable to meet Asuna's eyes. "But we just caused you trouble, and hurt your feelings too. I'm sorry - we all are. Forget about us," she whispered. "It's probably for the best anyway."

Asuna shook her head. "I can't do that," she said, voice thick with tears. She wrapped Yuuki in another embrace; for the second time, Yuuki refused to return it. "I'm happy I got to meet you, all of you! And I'm glad I got to be a part of your last quest. Even after everything," she sniffled, "I still wish I could join the Knights."

"Yeah," Yuuki murmured brokenly. "I wish - I wish you could too." She was inches away from tears as well. "I'm happy I came here, and got to meet ya." Slowly, she raised her arms and hugged Asuna back. I told her the girl had a way of getting you to open up and let her in... Looks like she figured out that it was easier not to fight. "You sayin' that makes it worth it. More than worth it. That's enough for me. I'm good," she whispered, tears streaming down her face.

"But..." Asuna said, then sniffled. "But isn't there anything else you wanna do?" She moved back and looked at Yuuki. "I mean, I'm sure there're lots of places in Alfheim you haven't been yet. And other virtual worlds!" she said, waving her hands. "There are still plenty of things to do, places to see. You can't tell me you've had enough!"

Yuuki grinned and looked over at the tree - not at me, though. "Over the last three years, we got to go on tons of adventures in other worlds. But I want my very last memory to be the one I got to go on with you, Asuna."

"Yeah, but," protested Asuna, "can't you think of anything else you want to see? Or maybe do?"

With a faint gust of wind, the last of the fog was blown away to reveal the scenery; the sun was setting, framed by two of the massive pillars that supported the next floor. The lake glittered with reflected light, and I stared out over the water, not looking at the girls below me. "I dunno," Yuuki mumbled. "I guess... maybe go to school again?" Like I thought, she'd love to play with Asu- wait.

What.

"I- for real?" Asuna asked. Can't really blame her, it was a weird last request.

Yuuki laughed. "Nah, forget it. Just kidding." She turned to stare out over the water. "I'm happy you wanna help, but don't sweat it. It's cool. I had an awesome life, really."

They stood in silence, looking at the water together. It struck me then just how _young_ Yuuki was; she was... what, sixteen this year? Three years younger than me, most likely. Gods, she was just a kid. Granted, the same age I was when I was in Aincrad, but still. Asuna would feel almost compelled to take Yuuki under her wing the second she got to know the Imp - I considered Asuna my sister for a reason and it wasn't exactly because I had been the most social of people to begin with, after all. I wonder, what would Yuuki's life have been like if she'd met Asuna from the start? ...Ah, I'm just having a mood swing because of my cathartic release earlier. I just needed to give it about five minutes and I'd be back to my normal... Oh gods, what did I say to Argo? Why did I even say something like that?

Fuck. Just gonna add that to the pile of things labeled 'Apologize for being an immense idiot'.

Suddenly, Asuna's back stiffened. "Maybe you can," she whispered.

"Wait, what?" Yuuki asked, turning back to the Undine.

"Maybe you can go," Asuna exclaimed. "Y'know, to school!"

Yuuki stared at her. "F'real?"

Asuna beamed brilliantly. "Of course! I should have thought of it the second you said something. I just need to ask Kirito something!" She reached forward and clasped Yuuki's hands in hers. "I'm sure it'll work!"

"You mean it?!"

"I do!"

As the girls embraced, I leaned back against the tree, mind racing. Asuna wanted to ask Kirito something that would allow Yuuki, a person locked to the virtual plane, to visit the school somehow. What was Kirito even working on these days anyway? If I'm recalling right, it was a continuation of the system we'd developed for Yui and Din at Agil's bar, though by this point it was more Kirito's baby than anything I had input on. He only needed me for my program. I'd given him the code for the controls to the webcam, allowing Din and Yui to control the camera from... the virtual world... And I think he was working on a mobile camera version if I remember right... Hm. Looks like I'll be returning to school, then. This might need my assistance, especially since I had only given him some of the basic code. Something like this, that Yuuki was going to be using? That needed a personal touch, since I wrote the code myself.

Eventually Asuna drew away from Yuuki and wiped at her eyes. I deliberately pretended I didn't see Asuna crying just then; that was something I never wanted to see, ever. No matter the reason. "I have to go, Yuuki," she said with a smile. "The teachers are probably already mad enough that I've missed these classes."

"Okay," the Imp mumbled.

"Don't worry," she soothed her. "I'll let you know when Kirito and I have worked everything out. It shouldn't take too long." With a beautiful smile, Asuna swiped her menu open and logged out of the game. Her body sat down automatically, but didn't move after that. In about thirty seconds it'd disappear.

Yuuki stood there for a while, staring at where Asuna had been, before shaking her head. With a small grunt I hopped off of the branch, landing lightly on the ground. "Told you she'd force you to open up," I said idly as I wandered toward where she was standing.

"Whatever," Yuuki said. "Can she really do it?"

"What, make your dream a reality?" I shrugged. "Of course she can. Kirito and I will have things ready by lunchtime tomorrow at the latest."

I turned to leave, but I felt Yuuki shift behind me. "Hey." I glanced over my shoulder. "I don't like you." Your feeling is noted, reciprocated, and dismissed. Not necessarily in that order. "But Asuna really does, so... truce?"

I turned fully to see her extending her hand towards me. The right one; her sword hand. Which meant I'd be shaking with my non-dominant hand, placing me in a distinct advantage if I, for whatever reason, wanted to kill her right now. An idea which, if the sudden stiffening of my shoulders was any indication, a small but vocal part of me agreed with very heartily. I told that bit to shut up and sit down before I beat it into submission. "Truce."

I clasped her hand; trying to squeeze and crush her hand was senseless, since that show of strength had no meaning here. I mean, we both still did it, of course, but it was pointless. "We do not need to be friendly with each other, or even nice, but I will not deliberately provoke you. For as long as you're her friend." It was unspoken, really, that if Asuna stopped being Yuuki's friend the truce would end; it was also unspoken that Asuna would remain Yuuki's friend until her death. I would restrain myself until the end came.

Her lips quirked slightly. "So formal and dramatic."

"You'll find that it's only when completing a contract," I sighed. "Every other waking moment I'm as irreverent as they come." I ran a hand through my hair and sighed again. "Well, I need to leave if I'm to make it back to school before Asuna gets there. Don't want her getting too worried about me." There's plenty of other reasons for her to be worried, most beginning with 'Argo' and ending with 'and I had a huge fight over a stupid little thing'. "Guard my body?"

"Truce don't extend that far," Yuuki grumbled, giving me a flat look. "If you want to risk it, go right ahead."

I smirked. "So... uh... you're so... shit, I totally had something for this." Damn it brain, why won't you give me access to my vocabulary? "Whatever. Now that my dramatic parting quip has been totally ruined, I'm getting out of here." With a small flick of attention I summoned my wings and flew up to the tree branches, nestling among them. It wasn't the smartest thing to do, but there weren't many monsters in this area, PKing would require other people in the game, and I was in a hurry.

After my eyes opened in the real world, I heaved a small sigh and forced myself to get up. My cat was still sleeping next to me and I gave him a few strokes. "Sorry, kitten, but I've got to get going. Kazuto and I will be talking and depending on how things go I'll be busy today and tomorrow morning." That's the best way to handle things right now. Just stay busy and hope I can distract myself long enough to figure out how to fix this.

Because gods know I need to fix this. Somehow.

* * *

 **Nick's actually pretty terrible at explaining things; somehow, Keiko manages to figure it out. She also usually doesn't have to ask him about the same type of problem more than once. I'm with Kana on this one – Keiko might be surprisingly smart, given that. Either that, or Nick is secretly really good with kids and Keiko is just barely young enough to qualify.**

 **Kana also wanted to do her own research without bothering Nick. This, unfortunately, backfired** _ **spectacularly**_ **. Er. The reason she couldn't find what Nick did was that she was missing half of the clues Nick had; she didn't know Yuuki was looking for someone in particular, or what exactly Nick said that pissed her off so much. With the same clues, she'd be able to figure it out pretty quickly.**

 **As for the fight, Nick was a moody little shit, Kana was preoccupied trying to get him to stop trying to protect her, and things just spiraled out of control. They both said things they probably wouldn't have said – at least, not in that particular way – and then said more things they probably shouldn't have. At least it was more or less empty in class? Small mercies, I guess. 'Cause gods know that if they'd had the fight with other people there the news would be all over the school in a matter of minutes and then Nick'd have to deal with people either condemning him for shouting at his girlfriend or offering pity to him for having such a bitchy girlfriend – either of which, given Nick's state of mind right now, would most likely result in a fistfight.**

 **Really, though, what the fight was about wasn't important. It was the reasons behind the fight that you all should be focusing on.**

 **Many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.**

* * *

 **Omake: ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA**

 **Sometime in the indeterminate future (at least seven months from now)**

I sat and stared at the TV screen. Beside me, Sugu giggled at the blank look of complete and total shock on my face. "See?" she crowed. "I told you you'd like it! Admit it, I was right."

I just raised a finger, mouth moving silently. Then, since I had no words to say, I put it down. I blinked and raised it again. "That. What was that."

"Huh?"

I turned and stared at her. "The punch thing. Where he hit the guy for like a minute straight." Holy shit that was amazing.

She grinned. "I know, right? He was really pissed off."

…I have an idea.

Much, much later, I was in Alfheim, practicing on an extremely sturdy mithril-based punching bag ('guaranteed to have more durability than a fucking tank', according to the guy that made it) when the rustling of grass behind me clued me in. "Hey, Leafa," I said, not turning around. Elbow strike followed by block-counter flowing into a spinning roundhouse. The bag let out a snapping sound, but when I glanced at it there was no damage to it.

"Hey, Nick," she said, walking up behind me. "What's up?"

I took a few deep breaths, then turned to grin at her. "Wanted to show you something." She nodded, and I took up a stance right in front of the punching bag.

I turned to the side and allowed my hips and knees to tilt forward as I leaned back as far as I could. Hooking one hand on where my belt would be in the real world, I extended my other toward the bag at an upwards angle, pointing at the bag with my index finger tilted slightly downwards. Like I was looking down on the bag. "Oh, no way," Leafa whispered.

My fists started glowing a pale white – almost a platinum color – and with a shout I unleashed my new Original Sword Skill, Cat Scratch Fever. Hey, I needed to keep the theme naming somehow, right? The first punch caught the bag on the left side, a loud crack almost covering up my shout of, "ORA!" Then my body dragged itself forward, the punches raining down on the bag. Right right left right left right left left right left right left right left left right left. With each punch I shouted again. With the final blow, a strong right smash straight forward, I drew out the final shout; the power of the punch knocked the bag off of its perch and sent it flying. When the dust settled, it was cracked and dented.

"No way!" Leafa exclaimed. "You made it into an OSS?"

I turned, shaking my hands out. "Yeah. As soon as I saw that, I needed to do this."

"Teach me teach me teach me!"

I laughed, giving her a playful look. "How much are you offering me?"

Leafa pouted. "Nii-iiick…"

"Fine, fine." Opening my menu, I went to my inventory and drew out the OSS scroll I'd made a few days earlier. I knew she'd ask for it. Leafa just rolled her eyes. "Here you go."

Leafa took the scroll and tapped it; after a few seconds, it disappeared. I'd taught her the skill, and now I couldn't teach anyone else. Suddenly, she threw her arms around me and hugged me tight. "Thank you Nick! You're the best!"

"Love you too," I murmured, hugging her back.

 **Because mood whiplash is fun.**


	24. Strength Defined

**Chapter 24: Strength Defined**

* * *

 **January 11** **th** **, 2026**

My eyes opened slowly and I groaned, pushing my AmuSphere off of my head and just sitting on my bed for a while. Eventually, I heaved a sigh and sat up, forcing myself to move despite the weight I was feeling. My cat was still sleeping next to me and I gave him a few strokes. "Sorry, kitten, but I've got to get going. Kazuto and I will be talking and depending on how things go I'll be busy today and tomorrow morning." That's the best way to handle things right now. Just stay busy and hope I can distract myself long enough to figure out how to fix this. Because gods know I've screwed everything up spectacularly as it was already. Asuna was pissed at me, Kana had been heartbeats away from screaming at me... Fuck it all.

The engine on my bike roared as I rode towards the school for the second time that day. Gods... At least I didn't have to rely on catching rides with public transportation if I can handle it. I never dealt well with being in cramped spaces with other people, especially not now. Deliberately putting myself in a situation where I'd be unable to move as I needed to? That was just a bad idea. Hells, going to school and sitting in class would be... interesting for the next few days. Perhaps I could talk to the teachers, get them to let me have a few arrangements switched until I've got everything back under control.

Pfft, yeah, like that'd happen. Giving them an excuse to look into my issues? No thanks. I'll just suffer quietly and do my level best not to turn around.

My first order of business was to sneak onto campus without the security noticing me - which was going to be a pain. I had a few options, then... Park my bike outside the gates and walk, or just say fuck it and ride through in a place where they aren't. Given the choice, I'd prefer the latter since it was less effort, but the former would probably be better. I don't know the security's patrol, or if they're even patrolling at all... Eh, fuck it. I'm only what, thirty minutes late? They can bite me, especially since I'm skipping class anyway. Not like it matters if I'm arriving at school late on top of that in the first place.

After I parked my bike and locked my helmet, I slunk inside. My stride automatically shifted to fit to the pattern of the tiles, my mind absently keeping track of that. Obsessing over the pattern was a defensive mechanism, I knew, but it wasn't like I could do anything about it. Staring at the floor kept me from having to acknowledge how many people were actually around me. Plus the tiles were more interesting than the people around me, so there's that. Unless it's one of my friends. In which case I'll actually pay attention. While my mind is still counting the tiles. It's like the stairs in this place - the first floor to second floor stairs are even-odd, so if I take them two at a time I need to start on my right foot, but left if I hit every step. So my walking gait depends on the first step, rather than the number of steps.

Without really realizing it I'd made my way to the Mechatronics lab that Kazuto could be found at during the day whenever we didn't have class or lunch. Since I was late, I didn't expect to see him there - or I'd be a little irritated. I was skipping, but I was a special case - but that didn't mean I couldn't get started. I knew enough about the architecture of the camera system that I should be able to get a head start on a control panel for Yuuki's use.

Humming to myself, I sat down and started coding. It was therapeutic, in a way, since I could just function on logic and not need to worry about emotion. Well, less therapeutic and more another way of running, but that's what I needed just then. I needed to figure out what the hells I was going to do eventually, but doing this for Asuna was a good way to start. Time passed quietly, the only things in my hearing the rhythmic clacking of keys as I typed and the music playing in my ears. Occasionally I'd pause to wonder about something I was working on, but by and large I didn't have to focus.

Eventually, I pushed my chair back and stretched out, tensing up before letting my body go limp. It felt good to have the kinks in my spine pop a few times, and I stood up to walk around a bit. I needed to move, feel my body shift and adjust. If I had my choice I'd like to fight for a bit, even if it was just shadowboxing or something like that; but the gym would be in use right about now, and it wasn't like I had a sparring partner or anything. Kazuto might do in a pinch - Sugu would be even better - but neither of them were available, unfortunately. I wonder if Kana -

...Fuck, and now I'm depressed again. We'll make up eventually, I know. We have to - we promised to stay together forever. Forever and ever. Sounds cliché, but it's my lifeline.

The program should be mostly done, since it was almost entirely throwing a GUI together and linking everything up. I'll have Kazuto take a look at it and tell me what to change, since I'm abysmal with graphics stuff if it isn't spelled out for me. Give me something to work off of, I'm golden, but freestyling it? Fat chance of it looking even halfway decent. I paced back and forth, trying to figure out what to do. I could go back to class, but that was... undesirable for several reasons, chief among them being, well, the fight Kana and I had. I know it's stupid and pathetic, but I didn't want to see her just then. I was already playing the scene in my head over and over again as it was, and I don't know if I could avoid having a breakdown if I were to talk to her just yet. Well, that just left going down to the cafeteria to grab something to munch on - preferably something chewy that I could gnaw at or something made of meat - or just kicking back to relax in this room. It wasn't used for classes, so nobody should bother me until lunchtime. I'm assuming lunchtime, at least.

I chose option B and leaned back in my chair, shifting slightly to pull out my latest book. I'd been reading it earlier, but put it away; fortunately, I remembered where I'd left off and flipped to the page. I overshot it the first time and flipped back a few pages, grumbling under my breath. There was just something about the paperback that was soothing, strangely enough. Something about the feel of the page, or the smell of the book, or maybe just the weight and way it fit into my hands. I've been a big reader ever since I was a kid... If books went entirely digital, I'd be a little depressed, I think. It would feel like the end of an era. Ah well... There'll always be second-hand bookstores, with luck.

I drifted through the hours, reading the pages. Reading was one of two things I'd found that could keep up with my mind - and the only other thing was fighting. So many variables went on in a fight that my processing power was pushed to its limit, forcing my mind into the present rather than one step ahead like usual. But reading was different - I could read and move on as fast as my mind interpreted the words. I was by no means a speed reader, and if I got distracted while reading I tended to read without seeing the words only to realize a few pages later that I had no idea what happened. Always irritating when that happened.

Before long I'd finished my book and sighed, putting it back in my bag. It was only... an hour until lunch. Gods, that book was intended to last me until the end of the week, how the seven hells did I manage to get through the book that quickly? ...Probably because I spent upwards of three hours reading without a break. Speaking of which, my legs are killing me. I wish these chairs were actually comfortable.

I stepped outside to get a drink of water and blinked; the halls were empty and I felt blissfully alone while strolling through the halls. I probably shouldn't be wandering the halls while class is in session, since that's just asking to get in trouble, but I've got an excuse in that I can claim to be headed towards the library. I'm just glad that they have a well-stocked fantasy section. I made my down towards the library and entered, giving the librarian a small wave. This wasn't the first time I'd been down to get a book, after all. I wandered towards the computer used for cataloging the books and stood there, staring at the screen blankly. What did I want to read? Fantasy, maybe. There were always good books in that genre.

After a few searches I had some books picked out and wandered through the library shelves, fingers trailing the spines of the books as I searched for the books I'd chosen. The silence - out of habit I'd removed my headphones once I entered the library - was soothing. But I knew I was just putting off the inevitable. It kept playing in my head over and over again... How I'd lost my temper so quickly, how our discussion had escalated into an argument and then escalated further. I didn't want to see it. I didn't want to relive it. But my mind wouldn't let me have any peace. It was... Gods, it was frustrating. 'I do love you, Nick... But you make it _really_ hard sometimes.' I gritted my teeth, my muscles tensing, and my hand clenched into a fist without my permission. My knuckles popped and I forced myself to relax, rolling my shoulders and cracking my fingers one at a time. The repetitive action cleared my mind a little bit, though I kept flexing my fingers even when I knew they wouldn't pop.

After claiming my prize I headed back to the room I'd been hiding out in; at some point during my detour, one of Kazuto's coworkers had arrived. He gave me a cursory glance, and I stared back at him levelly. After a second, he just nodded and went back to whatever electronic thing he was working on. I double-checked the progress of the build; the code wasn't complicated, but there was a lot of it, and it took a while to build. Not for the first time I wished there was a way I could slave some of the other computers to build faster, but I doubted the school would be thrilled if their machines were suddenly a hive of busy little worker bees. After swearing under my breath as I noticed a bug, killing the build to fix it – if certain cases triggered in a row it would result in a loop that constantly demanded more memory, resulting in the whole program shitting itself – and restarting the build, I just sighed and went back to reading my new book.

About thirty minutes later, my stomach not-so-gently reminded me that it was time to eat. Shrugging and putting my book in my bag, I slung it over my shoulder and strolled out to join the rest of the students. And just like that, I was a normal student again. Pfft... normal. I fell into my usual patterns, stepping on the center of each tile and always ending on the right foot when I took the steps. Like that I drifted through the crowds until I reached the cafeteria; the lines were long but I didn't particularly care. It was irritating but not unexpected, so I just sat back and handled it.

My lunch purchased, I strolled out to where our little group of friends usually sat. I was lucky; neither Kana nor Asuna were there, which meant I had no problem actually sitting down. Keiko and Rika were already eating, chatting away merrily, and they spared me a wave as I sat down. Giving them a wave in return, I got started on my own meal. Methodically working my way through the food, I barely registered Kazuto sitting down across from me until he called my name loudly. "Nick!"

I blinked and looked up. "Oh, hey Kazuto. What's up?"

He sighed. "I've been trying to get your attention for a minute now. Did you and Kana fight?" I tensed immediately, and dimly registered both Keiko and Rika looking at me and Kazuto. Swallowing my mouthful of food, I took a deep breath and stared at Kazuto.

"What would make you say that?"

Kazuto fidgeted uneasily. "Kana... may have mentioned something about what would happen to me if the two of you broke up." My eyes hardened into grey steel. I didn't want to be reminded of that fight, but the world seemed dead set on rubbing my nose in it. I glanced down at my tray of food, my hunger vanished into thin air. Crap... I need to eat, but this stuff will just taste like ashes in my mouth. Reluctantly, I forced myself to keep eating, deliberately looking away from the others. I couldn't let them see me be weak. "I just wanted to say... sorry." My jaw clenched involuntarily. He wasn't at fault. It wasn't anyone's fault except mine.

"Don't say anything about it," I growled. "...Please," I added after a heartbeat. I need to be polite to them. They're my family.

Keiko and Rika looked at each other before going still when I glanced at them out of the corner of my eye. Why would they act like that? It wasn't like I was going to do anything. I increased the pace of my eating, swallowing faster. I needed to get this food eaten and eaten now, because if Kana arrived while I was still here, bad things would happen.

While chewing, I scanned the crowd of milling students out of habit. No Kana. I took a deep breath before letting it out slowly, trying to get my racing heart under control. My eyes picked out a familiar head of long chestnut hair and my heart stopped for a second. Fuck. Not exactly what I wanted - too much in the opposite direction. Asuna approached our table confidently, weaving in and out of the students effortlessly. Honestly? She got here later than I expected.

Part of me wanted to run away immediately, damn the lunch, but I told that fight-or-flight part of me to shut up and go back in the corner where it belonged. Asuna was my sister, regardless of whatever falling out we were having at the moment. I should take this chance to apologize to her for my actions. That would be the best thing to do... But I can't apologize in front of everyone.

"Kirito!" she said, sweeping in to stand at the end of the table. "I need your help."

Just like that, Kazuto was sold. While the pair of them discussed what she was planning - making a mobile camera for Yuuki, naturally - I tried to figure out what to say to her. 'Sorry for spying on you'? No, that was far too flippant. I could try begging for her forgiveness, but that would seem trite and melodramatic and she wouldn't believe me. I needed her to believe me, I needed her to forgive me. In the middle of her conversation with Kazuto, Asuna kept glancing over at me and I realized I was staring while lost in thought. My lips thinned as I clenched my jaw, irrationally irritated that I had been staring, and I looked away.

Fortunately; because if I hadn't, I might have seen Kana after it was already too late. As it was, I needed to scramble if I wanted to be out of the room before Kana got her lunch and sat down. Damn it, that meant I couldn't spare the time to speak with Asuna quietly... I stood up and slung my bag back over my shoulder. With what Asuna was asking Kazuto to do, he'd be dropping by the mech room before long so I should probably head back there and camp out. Besides, I needed to check up on my build anyway. I dropped my tray off, slipping out of the side door. I glanced back towards the table to see Kana sitting down - and Asuna looking at me. I couldn't make it out from across the room, but she turned away after I caught her watching me. I wanted to apologize... I just couldn't. Not yet.

* * *

 **January 12** **th** **, 2026**

Just under twenty-four hours later, I was sitting in that same room, watching with folded arms as Kazuto put the finishing touches on the camera currently perched on Asuna's shoulder. She sat completely still, barely breathing in an attempt to not jostle her boyfriend, and I just silently swung my legs back and forth in the event I was actually needed. From the looks of things, I was extraneous; the program built without a problem and when he tested it yesterday the camera moved just fine. I suppose the only thing that could be changed would be the GUI, but Kazuto thought it was fine as it was.

"Now, see, the way it's set now, the gyro's too sensitive," one of his co-workers said, leaning over Kazuto's shoulder to tap at the laptop screen. "If you wanna prioritize visual tracking, you gotta give yourself a little more room on these parameters."

"Okay..." Kazuto said, tapping at the keys. I glanced at the data he was staring at, then sighed and rolled my eyes. There was absolutely no way I was making any kind of sense out of any of that. Good news is, I didn't really need to know how it worked, so long as it did. My job was just to get the camera controls working. "But, wouldn't it lag like crazy if she makes any sudden moves?"

"I guess," worker number two said, "you... just have to trust the learning program and optimizer can deal with it."

Asuna frowned and whined a little bit under her breath, raising her wrist to glance at her watch. I was proud of me for keeping the twitch subtle. "How much longer, guys?" she asked plaintively. "Our lunch break's almost over!"

"Let's just say this is the default setting and hope it works..." Kazuto murmured, completely ignoring Asuna's complaint. It was almost funny in a way. "Hey, er, Yuuki," he called. "Can you hear okay?"

"Yup!" Yuuki chirped, her voice coming from the mounted camera's speakers. "I hear ya loud and clear!"

"Good." Kazuto turned back to his laptop. "Alright, I'm firin' up the lens now, so it might get bright. Let me know when you can see perfect and I'll lock that setting in."

"Fire away!" For someone so somber yesterday, she seemed to be very cheerful. Guess she really did want to go to school. Kazuto started scrolling down on the laptop, making little colored bars move - that's really all I got out of it - and the camera let out small whirring sounds as the aperture closed. "Hold it!" Yuuki yelped suddenly, and Kazuto stopped making the colors dance.

"Okay," he said, standing up. "You're ready to go. Last thing," he added to Asuna as he started detaching wires. "I installed stabilizers, but they're kind of janky, so try not to make any sudden moves, 'kay?"

Asuna immediately sprang up in joy. "Thanks, Kirito!" she beamed.

"Agh!" Yuuki yelped.

Didn't he _just_ say not to do that?

Asuna immediately rushed from the room, talking animatedly to Yuuki as she went. The second the door slid shut behind her, the other two guys slouched slightly, and I raised an eyebrow. They knew she was taken, right? ...By their project lead? Pfft. Humans. Kazuto started packing up his laptop, unplugging the wires and dropping them off in a drawer somewhere before stowing the laptop in his bag and slinging it over his shoulder. "Ready to go, Nick?" he said, glancing at me.

Wordlessly, I hopped down and grabbed my own bag. I'd been waiting for him more than anything, so I just followed him out the door. For a few moments we just walked in silence before I said, "Get some feedback on how Yui likes the GUI this evening and I'll fix it up tomorrow, okay?"

"Yeah, sure," Kazuto said. Lunch break was over by this point, so we just headed towards our next class - which, oh so conveniently, was in the same direction. Granted, we were on the extreme end of the school wing so it would be hard for them not to be in the same direction, but still. "Hey, Nick?"

"Mmm?"

He paused a step, letting me catch up to him. I was tempted to halt as well, keep my accustomed half step behind him, but I didn't. As soon as I fell in step beside him, he started moving again, and I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye. "Why'd you and Kana have a fight?"

I glared at him out of the corner of my eyes, irritated that he'd ask me again after I snapped at him the day before, but my irritation just... drained away when I saw the concern in his eyes. I closed my eyes, heaving a huge sigh. "It's... I don't even know, Kazuto," I said. "I did something wrong, got mad and snapped at her... I just don't know what to do," I told him, opening my eyes blearily.

"Can't you just apologize?" he asked.

"Until I know what I did wrong, no," I told him. "I'm not going to half-ass an apology to Kana. She deserves nothing but the best." He hummed noncommittally, and I sighed again before looking forward, falling back half a step. Damn... I need to figure out what I did wrong quickly so that I can properly apologize to Kana... I wish one of the girls could tell me what I did wrong, but I can't tell them everything about what happened. They'd... They'd be disappointed in me.

I can't have that. I can't let them know how screwed up I really am. Because they'd leave.

* * *

I sighed as I sat down at lunch. Gods damn it all, why couldn't this be easy?

"What's wrong, Kana?" Rika asked me, concern in her voice. "You look... kinda upset. And you're sighing."

"It's... I think I made a mistake," I told her.

Keiko paused in eating her lunch. "Is this about you and Nick?" Reluctantly I nodded, and she frowned. "Yeah, he was acting weird yesterday before you showed up. You two had a fight, didn't you?"

"Yeah..." I stared at my food, not very hungry. Still, I could hear Nick's voice: 'You need to eat, catling. Food keeps your strength up.'. It's the best I'm going to get from him for a while, at least, so I'll appreciate it. Slowly, I picked up my sandwich and started eating.

"Which is super weird," Rika mentioned through her mouthful of food. "Since you two are like, perfect for each other. Nerds, both of you."

I snorted, but didn't say anything. We were nerds, at times. "I'm pretty sure it shouldn't have gotten that bad, but..."

"...Nick's been acting a little weird since mid-December," Rika finished. "Yeah, I've noticed too."

Keiko snorted. "Like it would be hard to notice. He's super-bipolar all of the sudden." She waved her fork in the air. "One minute he's the sweetest guy, and then the next he's hissing at a boss and trying to rip it apart with his bare hands."

"I guess we should just be glad he doesn't have some weird animal claws in ALO," Rika laughed. "'Cause then he'd never stop making puns about his 'bear hands'."

"Ouch," I winced. "That was bad, even for your standards, Rika."

"Hey!"

As we giggled, I felt a little bit better. I'm pretty sure the girls intended on that, because the rest of lunch I got the feeling they were deliberately acting up a little bit - though that could also be because neither Kazuto nor Asuna were there. Without those two, nothing was going to stop us from going wild. Eventually, though, my tray was empty and the knot in my stomach had more or less loosened up; the bell rang far too soon, and I sighed, shaking my head. "Hey, Kana?" Keiko said, poking me in the shoulder. "Cheer up, okay? Things'll be fine."

"Yeah," Rika said. "When was the last time that you two ever managed to stay mad at each other for more than a few days, anyway?" I smiled at them before dropping my tray off. Being mad wasn't really the issue, but it was nice that they cared.

Unfortunately, their classes were in the opposite direction, so I separated from them there. It was a bit strange to think that Nick and I were graduating in just a few months, while the others still had at least a year to go... At least we've already got things lined up for college thanks to Kikuoka. Well... that is, if Nick still wants to go to college with me. If we don't patch things up soon, I don't know...

I made it to my classroom and sat down, staring at the empty desk in front of me. It shouldn't be empty. That desk being empty instead of having the man I love sitting there just felt... wrong. But Nick had left class to go to the nurse halfway through the morning, citing a bad stomachache. I hope it wasn't serious.

The other students in the class took their seats, and I smiled as I scanned the class. A few hurried copying of notes over there, some girls giggling on that side... The strings were fairly clear to me, and I made a few mental notes as I tried to guess at the paths those people would follow. A good info broker always knows what someone's going to need before they need it, after all. They'll probably need notes, those two will be wanting a phone nu-

My thoughts were sent into disarray as Nick slipped through the door quietly; nobody even looked up to see who'd entered except me. For an instant, our eyes met - and then he looked down, shoulders hunched forward. I watched with concern as he shifted toward his sit and sat down without any of his usual grace; he flopped into his seat more than sat down, really. I shifted awkwardly, torn between wanting to ask him if he was okay and sitting back and letting him be. The tension between us finally forced me to subside, though I was still worried about the way he laid his head on his arms and slumped forward. He must not be feeling better.

The rest of class went more or less the same as the beginning; Nick was practically insensate, only raising his head to glance at the board from time to time and answer questions whenever he was asked. Other than that, he barely moved - until halfway through class when he went back down to the nurse's. I sighed as he stumbled out of the room, then shook my head. My notes were already a mess, but I could at least copy down what he's going to miss. I guess I should probably talk to the teachers, too. It'd be the best thing to do, after all. I just... I know all about codependency and things like that, and I'm trying to avoid it happening to us, but at the same time I want to do everything I can for Nick. Gods... I just don't know what to do.

After class I swung by the teacher's office; after knocking on the door, I poked my head through. "Ah, Kana, what can I do for you?" my homeroom teacher said, adjusting his glasses.

"Hello, sir," I said. "Nick was out for half of class today - upset stomach, I think - so I was just giving you a heads up in case he doesn't make it to class tomorrow."

He smiled at me. "Thank you for letting me know." I turned to leave, and I heard him clear his throat behind me. "By the way, Kana..."

I glanced over my shoulder. "Yes?"

"I'm sure it's nothing, but you... should make sure he's actually sick and not just taking advantage of you," the man said. My eyes narrowed at the thought. Nick, use me? That was impossible. If he was leaving class, he had a very good reason. The idea that he was using me to get away with skipping class was so far off the mark it was offensive - I was the one that yelled at him when it came to putting forth effort, for crying out loud! How _dare_ he insinuate that? _I was going to -_ "Like I said, I'm sure it's nothing," he said hurriedly and I realized some of my anger must have shone through.

Immediately, I smiled, hiding the simmering rage back underneath the surface. "Don't worry about it! I'm sure he's just got a stomach bug or something. Maybe just the same thing he had a few days ago." He smiled back at me and turned to get back to his paperwork; taking that as my dismissal, I whirled and stalked out of the room. Asshole.

I reached the nurse's office and reached for the door before I froze. For some reason, that door seemed way heavier than it should have been; after all, all I had to do was go in, say hi to Nick, and we could talk things out. But after what I'd said to him, if he thought I'd betrayed him... The thought of that made _me_ start feeling sick to my stomach. I just wanted him to realize that I was there to help and that he didn't have to do everything alone, but things just spiraled out of control so quickly. Eventually, I turned and walked down the hall without going in. I could leave the notes on his desk the next time he wasn't in class.

I wandered outside in a bit of a daze, lost in thought as I weaved in and out of the other students. It's no use constantly worrying about what's going on between me and Nick, because it'll sort itself out sooner or later. We promised forever and ever, after all, and he's never broken a promise to me yet. The cold air was bracing, and I shivered once before rubbing my arms and following the path. It was a little chilly out, but the winter uniform was more than enough to keep the worst of it at bay. "Eh?" I mumbled as I spotted a familiar face sitting at the pavilion. "What's Asuna doing out here by herself?"

I strolled over and she looked up at me; strangely enough, she had what looked like some sort of camera strapped to her shoulder. It almost reminded me of the cameras Kazuto and Nick had installed in Agil's bar so that Yui and Din could see this world. "Oh, hello Kana," she said. "Enjoying the air?"

"Yeah," I said, taking a seat next to her. The camera briefly swiveled to look at me, and I gave it an awkward wave. "So, Asuna, what's with the shoulder camera? Going for the '21st Century Pirate' look?"

Asuna giggled. "No, this is actually -"

"Hi, nice to meet ya!" I blinked at the bright voice and focused on the camera. "I'm Yuuki! You're a friend of Asuna's, right?"

I glanced at Asuna, and she smiled. "Like, Zekken Yuuki?" I asked. "From ALO?"

"Yeah, how'd you - wait, I kinda recognize you," the camera exclaimed. I could almost see Yuuki grinning. "You're... Argo, right? The info broker Cait Sith?"

I waved. "Nice to see you, Yuuki. We've missed you over the last few days."

Yuuki giggled. "Yeah, well, you guys better not get used to it! I'm coming back soon." Oh, good! I only met her for a few minutes, but Asuna seemed to be a lot happier after meeting her, so that's a good thing.

"So what are you doing?" I asked her, getting comfortable. The uniform skirt wasn't uncomfortable, I just preferred pants. And my hoodie. That thing was getting _mileage._ "Don't you have school of your own to go to?"

"Ah," Asuna said awkwardly, "that's, um..."

"I can't go to school," Yuuki said easily. "It's a medical thing. But Asuna's super awesome and got her teachers to let me sit in on the classes! I'm just using this since I can't leave the hospital." ...Right. For a moment I'd forgotten... "Anyway, thanks for making today happen, Asuna. Really, I had a blast. I'm never gonna forget today, ever."

Asuna inhaled quietly, and I glanced at her. By the looks of it, she was thinking the same thing I was: How long would that 'ever' last? She only had two, three more months to live, but she was so vibrant and full of energy it was easy to forget that. "Well," Asuna said after a few seconds, all traces of her thoughts gone from her voice, "of course you won't! The teacher said you could come back again if you want."

I grinned and leaned forward so the camera would pick me up. "And hey, you should at least tag along for a few more days until you realize just how crappy school is. I know the others would love to say hello."

"Oh!" Asuna said, raising a finger. "Modern Japanese is 3rd period tomorrow. Don't wanna miss that!"

"Yeah," Yuuki said quietly.

Asuna nodded. "Okay, so, what's next? Is there anything else you wanna do or see?"

"Oh, um..." Yuuki mumbled, "I guess there is... one place I'd like to go."

"Where?" Asuna asked.

"It's, uh... It's in Tsuikimidai," Yuuki said. "It'll take a while to get there."

Asuna stood up with a nod. "Well, we'd better get going, then." She turned to me. "Kana, are you coming too?"

"Eh?" I replied, oh so eloquently. "...Me?" I shook my head. "I-I couldn't, you two seem to be hitting it off so well and I don't want to bother you." Unspoken was the other reason why - Yuuki had been the start of Nick acting weird, and I still wasn't entirely sure how to feel about her. I definitely pitied her for living under a death sentence, but... she hurt Nick. I don't know how, or how deeply, but she hurt him. She was likeable and I was glad she and Asuna were getting along, but... she hurt Nick.

"Don't worry about it," Asuna said. "How about it, Yuuki? Do you mind if Kana is part of our little field trip?"

I could almost see the Imp's grin. "Naw, of course not! It's more fun with friends, right?" Damn. I just couldn't lock down how to feel about her.

"Well, looks like I'm outvoted," I said easily, and stood up before brushing myself off. "Carry on, Asuna. I'll call my family on the way."

My parents were fine with me staying out late; I'd proven myself responsible in the past, and I was with Asuna, so I got the all-clear once I passed the phone off to her. It was a relief, really; for the first few months after Kazuto freed us all from SAO, they refused to let me go anywhere without telling them where I was going, when I'd be back, and who I'd be with. And then, if I went over time, they'd immediately call. I liked it, a lot. It was nice to know that they cared, the same way Nick would send me a message if I didn't check in for our nightly chats. Just knowing that someone was watching over me made me feel a little bit safer. Of course, I'm still a teen, and teens _obviously_ can't be coddled by their parents forever - _obviously_ \- so it did get a little stifling after a while; but now that it's been over a year, they're starting to relax a bit.

We got off the train and walked out; Asuna stopped and stared up at the sky, red from the setting sun. "It's so pretty here, huh?" she said. "Just look at that sky!" Dusk was very pretty, and I basked in the winter sun for a few seconds. Just a few seconds, though - sun was sun, and it felt nice, but it was still cold.

"Yeah..." Yuuki murmured. "Hey, are your folks cool with you stayin' out so late? You've been haulin' me around all day."

Asuna looked at the camera, surprised, then smiled softly. "Don't you worry about it. I sent a text and it's fine. Well, where do you wanna go next, Yuuki?"

"Go... left."

Asuna began walking, and with a simple shrug I followed her. We wandered through the streets; at one point we passed through a shopping mall with plenty of people buying fresh fruits and vegetables. An urge hit me, and I tapped Asuna on the shoulder - the one without Yuuki's camera, that is. "Hang on a sec." I went over to the stall and grabbed a pair of delicious-looking apples, one for me and one for her, and paid for them. "Here ya go," I said, handing her the nicer one. "My treat."

"Thanks, Kana," Asuna said, accepting it and taking a dainty bite. I grinned at her and took a huge chomp from my own fruit; apples were delicious no matter how they were prepared.

We wandered a bit further, following Yuuki's directions; after a while we passed through the marketplace and found our way into a residential area. There weren't any other people around, so we were all by ourselves; still, Asuna didn't really pick up the conversation, so we walked in kinda comfortable silence. We passed a sleeping kitty, and I really wanted to go over and stroke it, but at the same time it'd probably not like me bothering it while it was asleep. Eventually, we passed it, and despite glancing over my shoulder at it I didn't bother the cat. It might be having a nice dream, after all, and I didn't want to wake it up.

The sky was so pretty while the sun was setting, but eventually night fell; we still hadn't reached wherever Yuuki was taking us, but it was close, according to the girl. "Hey," Asuna asked as we rounded a corner, "are we in Tsuikimidai yet?"

"Yeah," Yuuki told us. "Next corner, there's a white house. Can you stop there?" I looked up to see if I could spot it, and sure enough there was a house at the top of the hill.

"Yuuki..." Asuna breathed, staring at it. "This is your house, huh..."

"Mm-hmm." It looked like it had seen better days; there were flowerpots scattered around, but all the plants were withered. One of the pots had toppled over, spilling the soil and scattering it across the entrance way. In the backyard, a small round white table and two chairs stood, but one of the chairs had fallen backwards. Nobody could have lived here for... for a long time. I flipped through the profile Nick had given me, and remembered that her family had died a year ago. "I never thought I'd get the chance to see it again," she said. "Thanks for bringing me out here... And, for everything."

"Do you wanna go inside?" Asuna asked gently.

"Nah, this is enough," Yuuki said. I could imagine her shaking her head. "Come on, let's head back before your folks get worried."

Asuna smiled. "No, it's okay. We can stay a little longer."

"Me and my family..." Yuuki mused out loud. "We only got to live here a little over a year. And the weird thing is, I can remember every day so clear... My sister and me used to play in the yard, running around and around, we had barbecues, and we even built these bookshelves with our dad! Good times..."

"Lucky you..." I glanced at Asuna in surprise. That sounded remarkably bitter, considering it came from her.

"Yeah..." Yuuki sighed. "They're gonna tear it all down, though."

"Really?" I asked. "Why?"

"My aunt wants to put a convenience store here, or maybe sell it."

I frowned. That was a stupid reason. But, then again... Nobody would be using it... "No way," Asuna breathed.

"That's why I wanted to come here," Yuuki said with a tone that I'd started parsing as a shrug. "So I could see it one more time."

"Well, I know how you can save it," Asuna said.

"How?" Yuuki asked.

Asuna smiled knowingly. "You're fifteen now, aren't you? When you turn sixteen, find someone you love and marry him! That way you'll have someone around who will keep this house from ever being torn down." Asuna, sweetheart... While that might work, I don't think marriage solves all problems. Maybe you and Kazuto are a special relationship like that.

Yuuki laughed brightly. "You got the craziest ideas," she managed to say through her giggles. "...Hah, I don't think there's anyone I wanna marry, though."

"Oh yeah?" Asuna said, her voice teasing despite her innocent face. "But you and Jun make a cute couple."

"God no!" Yuuki whined. "That guy's so immature." ...I can't tell if this is a 'pot meet kettle' moment or not. Asuna just giggled. "Let's see... Who should I marry...? Oh!" she exclaimed suddenly. "I know! You!" I grinned as Asuna blinked in surprise. "The only thing is, if you marry me, you have to be the wife. I mean, the other way around, my name'd be Yuuki Yuuki! And, that'd be weird!" She devolved into giggles.

Asuna shook her head with a bemused smile. "I can't imagine what my mom would say..."

"I know, I'm kidding!" Yuuki giggled. "Besides, you already got someone lined up."

"Careful, Asuna," I teased gently. "You'll make Kazuto jealous with all this talk of marrying Yuuki."

"Oh," Asuna mumbled bashfully, looking away, "Er... yeah. I guess."

"Still, you should be careful." Asuna glanced at Yuuki's camera. "I get the feeling he's not living in the real world either. Not like me, but... y'know?" Asuna evidently knew what she meant, because she just giggled and scratched at her cheek. What did Yuuki mean, Kazuto was living in the virtual world? Did she mean like Nick, how he seemed more at home there? ...Huh. Come to think of it, those two did seem to be more... lively when they were in ALO. Food for thought.

"I can't thank you enough, Asuna," Yuuki said suddenly. "Just to see my old house again, you don't know how happy that makes me. Back when we lived here, I remember... We used to go to church to pray and stuff. And, mom'd always say this to me and my sister. 'God would never put us through all this suffering, if he didn't think we could bear it.' ...It didn't me feel any better though. Instead a' quotin' the Bible, what I really wanted was for Mom to talk to us like... well, a mom. But, you know, after seeing our old house, I think I get it now. The words didn't matter. It was the feeling behind those words. She was praying for me so I wouldn't feel sorry for myself. So I could be strong to the end. And, now I finally get it."

Asuna stared up at the stars. "I'm the same," she said. "See, I... I haven't understood my mom either. I can't hear what she's really trying to tell me... And she can't seem to hear me. Remember what you told me, Yuuki? That sometimes you have to fight to get your point across? How can I get to be strong? Like you?"

"Me?" Yuuki asked. "Please, I'm not strong. No way..."

"You know what's funny? Nick said the same thing when I asked him how to be strong, and he was wrong too! You're strong, Yuuki," Asuna said. "You're not like me... When you stand up to someone, you don't flinch or let them intimidate you... nothing seems to scare you at all! It's like second nature for you."

"Nn~yeaahhhh, I dunno," Yuuki hummed. "When I was living in the real world, er... you know what I mean, most of the time I was faking it." Asuna looked at the camera. "It's like... I thought I had to act cheerful... because I didn't want to make my mom and dad feel sad for me."

"Yuuki..." Asuna murmured.

"You wanna know what I think in the end?" Yuuki continued. "So what if I'm just acting? If I get to spend more time smilin', even if it's fake, what's the big deal, am I right? I mean... It's not like I got a whole lotta time left, and it'd be a shame to waste whatever I do got by moping around all the time. So, now I say exactly what I feel to everyone! And if they've got a problem with that, who cares? At least I spoke my mind. And, maybe even got a little closer to 'em."

Asuna smiled. "You're right. That's the reason we're here today... Why we're so close after only a few days. It's all because of you."

"Nope. That wasn't because of me." Asuna stared at Yuuki's camera. "It's 'cause, even after I ran away from you, you tracked me down. Look, how about you try talking to your mom? Like you did to me? If you try telling her how you feel? Maybe you'll get through to her." Asuna looked down, obviously unsure. "Don't worry!" Yuuki told her. "You can do it! You're way stronger than me, honest!"

Asuna turned to stare at the camera before leaning her cheek against it, holding it with her other hand. "Yuuki..."

"You hit me with everything you had," the girl said. "That's how I knew I could trust you with everything I had. In the end, it worked out for the both of us, didn't it?"

"Yes, it did," Asuna whispered. "Thank you so much, Yuuki..." She straightened and looked up at the night sky, where all the stars were glittering. It was a beautiful sight, I realized as I looked up myself. I'd felt a little awkward when those two had been having their moment, so I'd done my best to pretend I wasn't there. Still, it made me feel a little closer to Asuna to know that she was fine being so open in my presence, even if she wasn't like that with me personally.

As I shivered and raised my hood, still staring at the stars, I nodded to myself. I was going get closer to the others like that... I was going to be more than just someone that answers questions. I was going to be someone who solved problems before they became problems...

* * *

I sat back on my bed, staring up at my ceiling. As expected, a few seconds later the bed shifted as Emmit jumped up beside me. "Hey, catling," I murmured, giving in to his demands that I pet him. "Today sucked." I'd tried to make it through class, I really had; it was just that seeing Kana, knowing that she was right there and yet so far away, had twisted my stomach into knots and made me feel terrible. And then I felt bad that I'd reacted that way to seeing the woman I love, making my stomach feel even worse... And then it just spiraled from there, and I'd headed down to the nurse's office halfway through the morning. And then the same damn thing happened again this afternoon. At least I'd recovered quickly enough, though my urge to hurt something was burning inside me and I'd lost all my appetite.

At least I'd done something nice for Asuna. That was good, right?

Suddenly, my stomach clenched and every fiber of my body just wanted to sit up and punch the wall and fuck the damage to both parties. I _needed it,_ I needed pain, I needed to hurt something, I needed to be hurt, I needed to stop feeling hurt, to - Swallowing, I bit down on my forearm hard, hard enough to leave a mark. The pain cut through the haze of anger, bloodlust, and loathing enough for me to get myself back under control, but I could still feel it simmering under the surface. Fuck. I need to get one of the two problems off my plate, and that means I need to apologize to Asuna. Maybe I'll get lucky and she's in Alfheim right now.

Slowly, ignoring my throbbing arm, I grabbed my AmuSphere and logged in. As my world fell away, I exhaled slowly, trying to figure out what I was going to say. To figure out how the conversation would go. Would she accept my apology? Would she stay mad at me? Or would my worst fears come true, and she would refuse to have anything to do with me anymore? I couldn't... I couldn't take it if that happened. The worst thing that someone can do to another person is ignore them entirely, as if they don't matter to them in the slightest, and the thought of that terrified me.

I opened my eyes and blinked in confusion. Why was I in a tree? ...Oh, yeah, that's right... I hadn't played since I made a truce with Yuuki yesterday. Heh. Heh hah ha ha... I couldn't help but laugh bitterly. So I can make nice with someone that hates me, but I can't seem to maintain a positive relationship with the people that are close to me. This was it, wasn't it? Where everything started to fall apart. My world was shattering, the picture of the solution becoming murkier and less clear with every piece I slotted into place, so how _couldn't_ I laugh? Shaking myself, I swallowed the bitter mirth and jumped off, summoning my wings and taking to the skies. I didn't want to open my menu and see that she wasn't logged in; the best thing I could do was go to the Forest Home and hope that Asuna had logged in.

I landed on the dirt path leading up to the house and trotted up the steps easily. But despite my ease of movement, I hesitated when I raised my hand to knock at the door. A pulse ran through my arm, and I gripped my right arm tightly. It was simple, Rythin: you have to apologize to Asuna no matter what, and right now is your best chance to do so. So get over yourself and do it! I let out a small sigh and rapped on the door. "Is anyone home?" I called, testing the door. Unsurprisingly it wasn't locked, so I stepped inside.

Immediately I was presented by my first surprise. "Erica?" I asked, surprised to see Asuna's alternate account leaning forward, examining herself in the mirror on the desk. "I didn't know you wanted to spar..." I trailed off as the blonde Sylph turned to look at me with wide eyes. She didn't carry herself like Asuna did, and Asuna most definitely wouldn't have been looking at a mirror when she was the one to design the appearance. "Who are you, and how are you using that avatar?" I asked almost calmly, my mind calm as my hand drifted towards my knife. Whoever they were, they'd better have a good reason to be wearing that face or I'd -

Another flash of light caught my attention and I glanced over to the side quickly to see Asuna appear there in her regular Undine avatar. I tensed slightly; whatever was going on, I was either about to have a two-on-one fight, or Asuna would say something to put me at ease. "Rythin?" she asked, clearly surprised to see me. "What are you doing here?" Good, that was Asuna.

"Looking for you, actually," I said, my eyes returning to Erica. The Sylph was still looking at me, hands on her hips, but the look had changed to be more... disdainful. My arm throbbed where the Moonblade rested, the same place where I'd bitten my arm, and I deliberately folded my arms behind me to get it out of my sight and away from temptation. "I didn't anticipate two of you, though."

"Can you just... give me five minutes?" she asked, giving me a weak smile. I shrugged. Wasn't like I had anything better to do.

The Sylph let out a snort and turned back to look in the mirror. Apparently, I wasn't good enough to talk to, or something. "This is so bizarre," 'Erica' muttered as Asuna walked over to her. "Seeing a strange face mimic what I do is so unsettling." Well, brain, let's logic this out. Asuna knows them, they've never played VR games before, female voice. The likelihood of this being her mother is skyrocketing; it's the only thing that makes the pieces of the puzzle make sense. "And this body... It's so light," she continued, bouncing up and down.

I stepped back, sprawling out with my back to the fire. I kept my eye on those two, just in case one of them asked me something, but by and large I didn't move after that. I still listened, however. Asuna hadn't asked me to leave, and if she was going to have a discussion loud enough for me to hear then she didn't care if I heard. "That's normal," Asuna was saying. "That avatar's weight setting is about ninety pounds or so. Feels lighter than your real body, huh?"

I hid a smirk as the Sylph's eyes widened for a second before she whirled, hands on her hips. "That is so rude," 'Erica' snapped, glaring at Asuna. "I do not appreciate what you're implying." Huh. So looks like Asuna can play the game as well. Then her mother paused. "That's interesting," she said, leaning forward slightly. "Your face here looks just like your real one."

"Well, yes," Asuna said with a weak grin.

"Actually... I take it back. Your real face is puffier than this one."

Asuna frowned, obviously not happy at her mother's snide comment. My tail tip twitched idly as I hid another facial expression, this one far less amused. "Oh, now who's being rude!" she said, staring down her mother. "I look the same here as I do there!"

...I can't tell if this is a loving relationship or not. I really, really can't.

Asuna realized something and looked away, and Mother Dearest glanced around briefly. "Well, I'm here, now what?" she asked sullenly. "You don't have much time left."

"Follow me, Mom," Asuna said firmly, her voice brooking no argument. Ah, so 'Erica' really was Asuna's mother. The Undine led her into the storage room in the back, and I just shrugged to myself. Well, I'm not going to eavesdrop, so might as well take a nap. I double-checked to make sure that my AmuSphere wouldn't log me out if I fell asleep and then changed to my casual gear and rolled onto my back, closing my eyes. The crackling fire warmed my stomach, and before long I felt myself floating on that edge of sleep, where I'm asleep but also awake and I'm not sure which one is accurate. Fuck it, let's tip the scales. I rolled onto my side - well, flopped would probably be more accurate - and sprawled out on the rug, limp. So sleepy...

An unknown amount of time later I jerked violently and opened my eyes; I'd managed to fall asleep, but I have no idea for how long. Couldn't have been much longer than fifteen minutes or so, judging by how shitty I still felt. I shook my head and rubbed at my eyes before forcing myself to stand up, because with how comfortable the fire was I could feel myself already trying to go back to sleep. I glanced over at the storage room, but the door was still open; that meant Asuna and her mother were still around, or she'd have closed the door. She's very particular about that sort of thing. "You, boy." I turned around to see Asuna's mom standing there, staring at me.

"Yes, Mrs. Yuuki?" I asked, watching her levelly. Asuna was standing behind her mom, watching us both with worry in her eyes.

"You're Asuna's schoolmate, ah... Weyr, was it?" Asuna had a brief moment of highly visible panic; her mom had just been rude to me.

But I wasn't stupid; I could hear the slight tremor in her mom's voice. She'd been crying very recently and just now got it under control. Wonder what they talked about in there. "Yes ma'am," I said smoothly, and had to hide a smirk at the dumbfounded look on Asuna's face. Look, just 'cause I'm _usually_ a jackass towards everyone doesn't mean I have to be, and I try to do right by the family of my family. Where they could see me, at any rate. "She's a very important friend of mine." …How long would _that_ be true?

"Hm." The woman stared at me, and it was very disconcerting, since the last time I'd seen that face with that expression it was because Asuna was trying to figure out the best way to gut me like a fish. "Do you play this... game often?"

"Often enough." I tilted my head slightly and twitched my tail. "Asuna told me that you were planning to have her switch schools soon. If it's a matter of grades, I can help her out."

The woman snorted. "You? When do you study?" I just shrugged with a noncommittal hum. "Honestly..." She brought her hand to her temple and sighed. "What's your class rank? What makes you think you can help Asuna?"

...Really? Her investigation must not have been very thorough, though I suppose it's fair enough given that I'm not Asuna's boyfriend. "I don't know the rank for certain, ma'am, but definitely single digits." I had the distinct pleasure of watching her mouth drop. "I'm a year ahead of Asuna, so most of the stuff I'd be helping her with would be review. Which would honestly be pretty helpful, since the college I was accepted to is apparently fairly rigorous."

Asuna's mom gaped at me before blinking a few times. "I... I see. Very well." She turned to Asuna. "I have to think about this. I will give you my decision in the morning." Asuna nodded solemnly. "Good." She paused for a second. "Now, how do I get this stupid machine off my head?"

I turned so she wouldn't see my grin. Hopefully, my shoulders didn't shake too much.

Eventually, Asuna managed to guide her mom into logging out, and it was just the two of us. I sat, staring at the fire, and heard Asuna sit down on the couch behind me. "I was worried," she said softly. "Please don't get angry, Ryth... Nick, but I thought you were going to get mad at her."

I smiled without turning around. "I try not to be rude to the family of the people I care about. Not when they don't want me to." There was a soft intake of breath behind me, and I swallowed. My stomach churned, and I glared at it briefly. Not now, stomach. I have to do this. "Asuna?" Unbidden, one of my hands curled into a tight fist.

"...Yes?"

I turned to look at her and met her gaze steadily. "I..." Why was this so hard? I'd been trying for days now, and I just couldn't find the way to say it. "I... I'm sorry." She blinked but didn't react in any other way. "I'm sorry for crossing the line and, uh..." Gods damn my vocabulary. Of course I can't think of what to say. "And for violating your privacy. I didn't know."

She stared at me for a few more seconds before shaking her head. "Nick, I'm sorry too." I blinked. What? What does she have to be sorry about? "I'm sorry for blowing up at you like that. It'd been a long day, and my mom had just freaked out at me, and..." She cut herself off. "No, I promised myself I wouldn't make excuses. I'm -"

"Okay, stop," I said, raising a hand to interrupt her. She broke off, looking at me in confusion. We both ignored the way my hand was shaking violently. "First off, I don't ever want to hear you apologize to me ever again, got it? If you yelled at me, I probably deserved it. And if I didn't, I deserved it for something else I did." She giggled reluctantly. Good, that got a smile. "Second, you have nothing to apologize for." I frowned and looked away. "I get where you're coming from. Sometimes you just have a bad day and something sets you off... And then you end up saying something horrible to someone you care about. Something you might not be able to take back."

"Nick, are you..."

"So..." I deliberately didn't let her finish the question, looking at her and biting at my lower lip. "...Am I forgiven?"

She smiled and let out a soft sigh. "Yes, you're forgiven," she said with a fond and patient grin.

Those simple words made all that tension in me just melt away, and I closed my eyes as a shudder ran through me. She forgave me. I hadn't ruined our friendship. I hadn't broken our family bond. Everything was going to be okay. "Alright," I said finally when I could trust my voice not to shake and betray just how much she meant to me. "So, now that I've been forgiven for snooping, mind if I snoop a bit?"

Asuna laughed. "You're a dork, Nick."

"Is that a no?"

"No, no, it's fine," she said. "I bet you're wondering about the whole conversation with my mom, right?"

I shrugged. "A little bit, but if you don't want to talk about it that's cool."

Asuna hummed in thought, tapping her chin. "I think I managed to get her to understand me, finally," she said. "We talked for a bit, and with luck my mom finally heard what I was trying to tell her." She pressed her hand over her chest, right where her heart would be. "And, I think I finally heard what she was trying to tell me, a little."

I blinked. "Gonna level with you here, sweetheart, I have no idea what you're talking about."

Asuna stared at me, then laughed helplessly. "Nick... I'm trying to be touching here. Do you have to be... you?"

"Really?" Languidly, I waved a hand. "Carry on, then."

She opened her mouth, then frowned. "Well, now you ruined it," she huffed. "Jerk." I just grinned unrepentantly and folded my arms behind my head.

"Yuuki's been good for you, hasn't she?" I said quietly.

"She has," Asuna smiled fondly. "I owe her a lot."

I leaned back, using my hands to prop me up. "I'm glad she's helped you where I couldn't," I murmured. "Just wish I could have done something. Anything."

Asuna leaned forward as she smiled prettily. "Sorry, I didn't quite catch that. Could you say that again?"

"No, nothing. Just muttering to myself."

"Aw, c'mon, tell me!"

"Nope. It's a secret!"

She… pouted – which was both the only thing I could call that facial expression and surprisingly adorable. I don't think I'd ever seen her pout before today, and now it's happened twice in one day. "Nii-iick!" I just laughed and jumped to my feet. "You're leaving?"

I grinned. "Sorry, Princess. Some of us have to actually play this game and not just have drama." She stuck her tongue out at me and I turned, waving idly. "Later, Asuna. Let me know what the parental unit decides, alright?"

"You'll be the first person I call," Asuna called from the sofa. Really? Before Kirito, even? Damn. I'm lucky. ...Oh, right, he doesn't actually know she's leaving.

* * *

 **January 13** **th** **, 2026**

My phone rang as I was sitting in my usual seat, reading my next book. I glanced at the caller, and it took my tired brain a few seconds to realize that Asuna was calling. "Nnnnng?" I noised after picking up. What'd you want?

"Wha- oh, right, it's morning," Asuna mumbled.

"Mng." Morning to you too.

"I talked to my mom this morning and she said I can stay! As long as I keep my grades up, I don't have to leave!"

I cracked a smile, even if she couldn't see it. "Good news." Oh good, we've progressed to the talking portion of waking up. After I stop slurring all my words together, we'll be officially coherent.

"I know! Thank you, Nick, for everything." I could _hear_ her giant grin. Asuna really was amazing, being able to deal with things in a healthy and well-balanced manner. "I'll see you later, okay?"

"Mmmh." See ya. I ended the call and stared at my phone before shaking my head and letting my grin fade away. Well, that's half of my problems gone. And Yuuki and I have a truce, so we should be good on that front too. All that's left is -

The door slid open, and I glanced at the time on my phone. Exactly according to schedule, perfectly on time as always. I didn't even need to look back to know that Kana had just walked through the door. I tried to control it, but I felt my shoulders tense anyway; with luck, though, she wouldn't know. I didn't want her to think I hated her, and if my body kept reacting like that, that's exactly what she'd think. C'mon, Nick, you handled the situation with Asuna well enough, for a given definition of 'well' and 'enough'... This can't be too much harder.

Kana sat down behind me, and I went back to my book without turning around to say 'I'm sorry' or 'I love you' or even 'Hello' or 'Good morning'. Fuck everything. This was so much harder.

* * *

 **Well, that's one fuckup resolved. Good job, Nick. Now, if only you could manage to not have to resolve fuckups in the first place that'd just be fantastic, wouldn't it.**

 **That whole single-ranked thing isn't something I came up with out of whole cloth, just so people are aware; back in high-school, I was ranked #7 in the class without putting much, if any, effort into studying or stuff like that. If I had a test, I did the test, and that was the grade I got. I probably couldn't have done any better than 7 (because I didn't take every AP class known to mankind immediately) but that was good enough for me. 3.5 GPA without studying is pretty sweet – and this semester I'm putting forth effort (for shits and giggles, really) and pulling a sweet 4.0.**

 **Next chapter's the last one, kiddies. Those of you that know what's coming, well… don't spoil it for the rest of the class, hm?**

 **Many thanks to everyone that favorited, followed, or reviewed.**


	25. Mother's Rosario

**Chapter 25: Mother's Rosario**

* * *

 **January 16** **th** **, 2026**

I didn't know what I was feeling, or why I was feeling it.

That irritated me.

It'd been just under a week since Yuuki started attending school with us and I made up with Asuna. Of course, one of those was a little tiny bit more important than the other. At least, to me. Yuuki was, to all appearances - and according to Asuna, at least - fitting in with the others. Apparently, she was a hit with all her classmates and everyone loved her. Yeah, of course they did. The students here know what it's like to be forced to attend school under different circumstances due to random issues, so I doubt anyone pressed the issue about why she was coming to a school designed solely for Aincrad survivors while riding on Asuna's shoulder.

She was fitting right in with our friend group too; since she went everywhere Asuna went - or maybe it was the other way around, since I've seen her order Asuna around occasionally - she got introduced to everyone as a matter of course. I was never there for any of this in person, but through secondhand stories courtesy of Kazuto and Asuna, I knew that she fit right in. She was a bit shy around Kirito at first, for some reason, but eventually they got to talking about swords and boom! Instant friendship.

As for why I didn't know any of this in person, well...

I may have been able to patch things up with Asuna, but that was solely a matter of pure luck. I managed to log in and catch her when she was in an emotionally vulnerable state; I doubt that if I'd apologized to her at any other point in time it would have flown over so easily. I got lucky, plain and simple. Unfortunately, that wouldn't happen when it came to Kana. The woman I loved was far too strong to ever have problems like that, and it's not like I could justify taking advantage of something like that. Yes I wanted to make up with her, but I didn't want it to be at the expense of her happiness, even temporarily.

This was it, though, wasn't it? How they left. _Everyone_ left, sooner or later. When I'd been a child, after the third time my new friend left me, I'd asked my parent about it. 'Why do all my friends leave? Is it my fault?' No matter what I did, no matter how careful I was, my friends left me. It was as inevitable as entropy. The only way for me to not lose someone was to withdraw from them, keep them from getting close. And it was too late for that here; Kana, Kazuto, and all the others had already snuck through my guard. So the universe was finally snapping back to status quo and it was worse than usual because they'd been so important to me. It always happened. The more important they were, the harsher the split and more devastating the fallout.

I sighed moodily and ate another bite of my sandwich before shaking my head and scribbling down the next answer to my homework. I'd missed quite a few classes due to my upset stomach and frequent trips to the nurse's office, and there was only so much I could get away with. Hence why I was busy doing make-up work for the teachers whose classes I had missed; at least that way I could show them I was more than willing to do the work, just not when my insides were very stridently demanding to be on my outsides. I still felt like shit that I was reacting to Kana that way... But then again, I was always running from everything, so why should this be any different? Gods...

"Ah, Mr. Weyr, I see you're catching up on work you've missed," one of my teachers said.

I glanced up; my math teacher was standing in the doorway. I glanced around me and blinked as I realized I was the only person in the room. "Yes, sir," I said politely. "My stomach has been acting up lately - it might be because of a bug I caught. I thought it was only a twenty-four hour cold, but my stomach seems to be very volatile as of late."

He nodded understandingly. "Well, you seem to have things well in hand, young man, and so long as your grades don't slip I have no problem with you missing my class because of illness."

"Thank you, sir." My grades couldn't slip; it was part of my deal with Asuna. I'd help tutor her on her coursework, and in turn she'd keep her grades up and get to stay in school with us. Not that it really mattered, in the end, since I was graduating soon anyway... "My grades won't suffer, I can ensure that." The notes on the classes I missed were always sitting in my desk before lunch and when the day ended, along with the homework that had been passed out. I really was grateful for Kana's help, I really was, I just couldn't express how grateful until I apologized to her.

He gave me a smile. "I have faith in you. Carry on." Hm. Faith? In something like me? Worthless.

Doing my homework in class wasn't the only reason I was eating lunch in the classroom. It was easier to avoid the others this way; say what I might, it was still a little awkward to have both me and Kana sitting at the same table, so if one person was already sitting, the second had to find somewhere else to sit. Given the choice between Kana and someone as worthless as me, I couldn't make her leave our friends, so by default it fell to me to vacate the premises. I didn't really mind all that much, I guess... But it still stung whenever I saw everyone laughing together, especially at something Yuuki had said.

That's when I got that strange burning in my chest, like half of me wanted one thing but half of me wanted another. I don't know what it was, that's not the way it felt, but I don't know how to describe it properly.

It wasn't any better in Alfheim, really. I'd taken to crashing at Kirito and Asuna's log cabin - since my apartment in-game was fairly obviously a bad place to be at the moment - and that's where I found myself when waking up. Stretching, I yawned and cracked my back, sighing with relief. Sometimes my me in this world got stiff from falling asleep on the couch and it always felt nice when my spine popped back into alignment. "Asuna, you here?" I called out. We had to go over a few things in English, if I'm recalling last study session accurately. I told her it was okay for us to study in here, so long as we studied straight for at least a half-hour; still, though, I preferred doing my work in the real world. Though the two worlds were the same, technically, I felt like doing homework in Alfheim - unless I was really, really lazy and procrastinated all of it - was sullying it, somehow.

Or maybe I'm just weird like that. Probably that, yeah.

I wandered outside and blinked; I wasn't expecting a bunch of grills set up on their lawn. Huh. Wonder what's going on.

"Hey, Rythin!" Klein called out, giving me a wave when I looked his way. "Glad you could make it!"

I have no idea what's going on. "Like I'd miss it, right?" We both laughed. He and Agil were over chatting about something, and so after I gave the tall black man a wave I made my escape - though it was more 'continue wandering around' than 'escape'. There was a keg set up over to the side, and I grabbed a mug out of habit, though I didn't fill it up immediately. All in all it looked like they were getting ready for a... party...

Fuck. Asuna did mention something about that, I think. Maybe. I don't remember. My memory was a bit blurry these days.

Soon, other people began flying in; the two factions we were closely tied to, the Cait Sith and the Sylph, showed up together. It was amusingly tense for a few seconds when Eugene arrived as well and Sakuya spent a few minutes glaring daggers at the Salamander general, but they broke it up fast enough. Chrysheight showed up as well, which was a bit of a surprise, as well as Recon. Everyone from our friend group at school started trickling in as they got access to Alfheim; I was resting on the roof for most of this, so I got the best view as to when people were showing up. Argo slipped in, almost unnoticed by the others, but I saw her. She glanced my way once, and I looked away. I didn't want to see hate in her eyes.

While the others were all chatting happily, I sunned on the roof, staring at the sky - and as a result I was the first to see the eight fairies flying toward us. Sighing, I rolled to my side and poked my head over the edge of the roof. "They're here," I called out before hopping off the roof, falling and landing with a debatable amount of grace. I landed on my feet, though, and that was the important part.

Asuna and the Sleeping Knights arrived, and I had a brief moment of awkward tension when I caught sight of Yuuki; she was giggling at something Asuna had just said. That strange feeling showed up again, like I desired something so very badly but couldn't do a thing to take what I wanted. It's strange. "Here it is," Asuna called, hefting a large bag in her hand. "I've got everything!"

About fifteen minutes later, the barbecue was sizzling and it smelled fantastic. "Um, okay everyone!" Asuna called to get our attention. "A toast! To this gathering of friends, new and old!" She raised her mug. "To us!"

"To us!" everyone else chorused. I just raised my mug silently before sipping at the juice inside.

The barbeque was very lively, which made my previous vantage point far more peaceful than it really should have been. As soon as I grabbed a plate of food, I snuck back onto the roof and watched from above. Eugene approached Yuuki and was chatting with her about something or other, and reached out to place a gauntleted hand on her shoulder; immediately, Alicia and Sakuya swooped in, the Sylph lord lifting Eugene's hand as the Cait Sith lord quickly escorted Yuuki back away from the Salamander general and toward the safety of Asuna. While Sakuya scolded Eugene, waving a finger at him, Yuuki and Asuna laughed.

Over to the side, I could see Jun, Nori, and Siune thanking Klein and Kirito for their assistance with the guild - or, at least, that's what I assumed, given Jun's salute of respect. I figured that I didn't need to intrude, so I just stayed up on my spot and munched on another slice of veggies. By the corner of the house, I could see Leafa and Tecchi chatting away, and as Leafa laughed happily about something he said I noticed an aura of despair coming from the side of the house. I padded over to the side and peeked over to see Recon staring at the two, biting at his... shirt? Huh. Well, whatever. Agil and Chrysheight grinned as they brought more food over to Talken, who was eating with a single-mindedness that put mine to shame; as they laughed, Nori wandered over and started teasing the poor boy. It was all so very amusing.

Silica and Jun looked like they were talking about something, and I was just wondering what - the Salamander boy looked like he might have a small crush on the Cait Sith girl - when I heard someone land on the roof behind me. "Hey, Rythin," Sinon said, and I sighed as my shoulders relaxed. "Don't be so disappointed, huh?" she joked, nudging me with an elbow.

"Sinon, why would I _ever_ be disappointed to see your lovely face," I said in a deadpan, reaching out to pat her shoulder. "Why, this is one of the most wonderful things that has happened all day."

"Again," she sighed with a grin, "you're a perfect example of why I don't like guys. Always thinking with their lower heads. And with you it's even worse, since you only have half a brain between the two."

I laughed despite myself. "You do realize that I'm asexual and as such all but literally hard-wired not to think that way, right?"

She stopped and stared at me. "You're joking."

I folded my arms behind my head and leaned back to rest on the roof, a smirk on my lips. "Nope. I'm sorry to break your heart and shatter your hopes and dreams, but... Hundred percent asexual. Don't give a fuck, figuratively and literally."

"...Then all those times you -"

"Yyyyyyep."

"...And when I -" Her face was a little red by this point.

"Uh-huh."

"...But don't you..." She trailed off, staring into the distance and blinking on occasion. "Huh."

I grinned. "See? Aren't you grateful I told you before you managed to embarrass yourself further?" I loved teasing Sinon like this, since she always reacted so well. And because she fired back just as much, making this fun. I could have sworn I'd told her before… Didn't she say something about me not being taken in by a pretty face earlier? Ah, no matter. She probably just thought I was being faithful to – being faithful.

"I _was_ wondering why the other girls laughed every time I complained about you flirting," she mumbled thoughtfully. "I guess that explains it." I grinned again, though it slipped away quickly. "So anyways, what're you doing up here? Aren't you usually with Argo at times like this?"

My tail lashed, though only once before I got myself back under control. "Eh," I said with a dismissive wave of the hand, "parties aren't really my thing. Too loud."

"You got that right," she sighed. "The roof is pretty peaceful, isn't it?"

"Mm." I stretched out, feeling my tail tip twitching idly. "Sometimes it's nice to just relax and get away from it all. Is this what it's like to set up a sniping spot and then just wait?"

"Hm…" Sinon stretched out next to me, arms under her head. "Sorta, I guess. A lot more relaxing, since being in a sniper's nest means you have to be watching through the scope the whole time. So, even if there was sun, which was rare in GGO, I never really noticed it."

"Cool." Bored, I picked up a small pebble that had found its way to the roof and tossed it to Sinon; she caught it in one hand and glanced at me curiously. Grinning, I grabbed another one and nodded at her before aiming and tossing the pebble at the people milling below. A surprised yelp that sounded like it came from Klein was my reward. Beside me, Sinon glanced at me before smirking and taking aim. When she threw her own projectile, it earned two yelps, another from Klein and then one from Kirito. I grinned and gave her a look. "Impressive."

"Child's play." But she was grinning. She was enjoying herself.

We basked in the sun, alternating lying limp on the roof and taking potshots at Kirito and Klein, until people started grouping up. "Hey, cats on the hot tin roof!" Kirito called, and the two of us looked at him. That was actually a pretty good reference, I suppose. Maybe a bit archaic and a surprise coming from him, but still classy. "We're going to fight the boss on Floor 28! You guys coming?"

I shrugged and glanced at Sinon. "Up for it?"

"Why not," she shrugged back.

The two of us jumped off the roof, landing lithely. Sinon opted for the smooth landing, flowing like the cat she resembled, while I landed heavily, cracking one of the pavement stones beneath my feet. I straightened up to see Sinon watching me with a raised eyebrow; she glanced at the stone beneath my feet then back at me, and I just gave her a grin. It'd be fixed by the time we got back - environment damage wasn't permanent. She snorted and rolled her eyes before turning away, but I saw her tail twitch with amusement. Grinning cheerfully, I followed the rest of the pack to town and the warp gate. The others were all chatting happily amongst themselves, and I did a quick head count. My stomach lurched for a second before settling, and I clenched my fists. Argo wasn't there, and I don't know where she went... Gods damn it all. Then again, she usually didn't do boss fights, so... I guess it's not that surprising.

Screaming, the others all raced through the 28th Floor's Labyrinth; Jun and Yuuki in particular were fired up, and had volunteered to take point and murder anything in our way. That, of course, meant that we had nothing to do but run, and that got old after a while. "You're going down!" Klein, Kirito, and Yui all shouted as they followed in the path that the two front-liners had cleared for us. It was times like this that I was super glad I had chosen a speed-type build, since I didn't have to put forth too much effort to keep up with the rest of the pack. If I had, well, I'd probably have dropped out of the race and just waited patiently. Or not, the promise of violence is a wonderful lure.

The 28th Floor's boss was some weird crab-crawfish thingy. I don't even know what it was called, since it died so fucking quickly to all of us hitting it with our best shots. I didn't even have to try, really, just use my Martial Arts skills to keep it and its giant fuckoff claws distracted while the others carved it up in no time. "Anyone for crab legs?" I asked idly as it burst into polygons and everyone celebrated. "I'm pretty sure some of the villages on the 4th Floor have some."

* * *

Time passed, as time was wont to do, and things, well, happened. Yuuki kept learning, using Asuna as proxy, and from what I could tell she loved every second of it. We had a neat little competition in February to figure out who among us was the fastest flyer; the 29th Floor had a bunch of rocks floating in neat little formations, so Leafa had the great idea to set up a race course through them. Kirito and Klein didn't participate so they were the ones to set up the racetrack, and the rest of us flew. I was able to keep up with the fast flyers - thanks, speed build - but I wasn't able to surpass the people who flew like it was second nature to them, namely Leafa, Nori, and Yuuki, and so came in fourth during the overall competition. I laughed slightly as I saw Silica pouting, slumped over as she flew toward the goal, and Sinon and I comforted her with gentle pats on the back.

Some jerk was snickering at her expression. …I totally wasn't the one snickering.

...Even I don't believe that one, and the easiest person to lie to is yourself.

Kazuto and Yuuki were getting along fantastically, something Asuna had no problem ranting about when we were supposed to be studying. "And they just get into some conversation about technology and stuff, and I have no idea what they're saying half the time, and I'm pretty sure they don't even realize I exist," she finished saying to me one day. "What do you think, Nick?"

"I think," I said, giving her a serious look, and she blinked attentively. "...I think you should figure out the equation for this parabola." Her shoulders slumped and she glared at me half-heartedly. "Asuna, you should know by now that I'm most definitely not the person to go to for relationship advice." Ain't that the truth.

She sighed and leaned against me, poking at her calculator. "Yeah, I just wanted someone to rant to. You're good at that, Nick."

"Thanks, I think." Then I frowned suddenly. "Y'know, I just realized something."

"What's that?"

"I'm playing the role of sassy gay best friend right now," I said. I hummed in thought. "How strange. Particularly because I'm neither gay nor your best friend." That spot went to Rika.

…The best friend spot. Jury's still out on the other one, but given that she's holding the torch for Kazuto, I wasn't holding my breath.

Asuna smiled. "Well, hurry up and be sassy then, bestie."

I chuckled. "Girl, you know I'm never not sassy."

At least her home life was improving? At least, that's what she was telling me, at any rate. Her mother had checked in on us while we were studying at Asuna's house one weekend, and Mother Dearest didn't seem to have any complaints. She even offered to pay me a small pittance as a tutor, though I turned it down. I was helping Asuna, and after all she'd done for me I couldn't possibly accept payment for it. Her success was all I needed. Regardless, Asuna's grades were pulling up - though whether that was because of me, her other tutor, or her new attitude toward the real world I couldn't say. Probably because she was actually focusing now.

The Sleeping Knights and Asuna managed to clear another boss, making me feel that weird desire feeling in my stomach again. My fists clenched and I stalked away from the Monument of Swordsmen angrily. I hated feeling things I couldn't name, let alone control. If I could just figure that stupid emotion out...

And then came the Alfheim Duel Tournament.

* * *

 **February 15** **th** **, 2026**

I strode into the arena, feeling sand crunch under my feet. A round of cheers came from the players packed into the coliseum battleground, but I didn't bother looking around; my attention was solely on my opponent. This was the semi-finals, and all I had to do was win one more match and then I'd be able to go up against Kirito; his win was all but determined, since he was, well, Kirito. I had faith in my friend. The only thing standing in my way was the slender figure walking toward me; her skirt flapped in the dusty breeze, and her long purple hair blew across her face. Her long sword was still sheathed on her hip, but I knew the second our duel countdown began it would be out and pointed at my heart.

"So, Yuuki," I said as we nodded respectfully to each other, "ready to fight for real?"

"Ready to lose again?" she taunted.

My eyes glittered. "By all means, continue to be confident," I purred. "This time I'm focused."

She laughed, her eyes hard but happy. "Good to hear it. I wanna fight ya at your best!" Believe me. It's coming. No holding back this time.

The duel countdown timer began - an extra-long two minute timer, so that people could plan strategies I guess - and I unsheathed my Moonblade. If I could nick her, that would instantly put me at an advantage because every instant she wasn't dealing damage the gap between us would grow bigger. I scanned the arena for any - "Hey!" Yuuki called, and I glanced at her curiously. "We gonna do a pre-fight boast?"

I blinked at her. Even the haze of Future Step didn't make her outfit any less purple. "What."

"Y'know, like tryin' to intimidate the other person," she said, gesturing with her free hand.

I shrugged. Not like I had any better idea. "Sure, why not."

"Yess!" she cheered. "You're the first guy to say yes! Sweet!" What have I done. "Listen up!" she shouted, pointing her sword at me. "You say you can beat me? I'm Yuuki, the Absolute Sword! And there's ABSOLUTELY no way you're gonna win!" Cheers filled the air.

Oh, so that's all I have to do? "Heh," I chuckled, my teeth bared in a good-natured snarl. "My name is Rythin the Tactician and my Future Step skill foresees your defeat!" More cheering. Yuuki gave me a thumbs up and a quick grin, and despite myself I returned the grin. Being able to boast like that was kinda entertaining.

The duel rang, the match began, and I immediately put my plan into action.

By running away.

Once I had a good bit of distance between me and Yuuki, I raised a hand. Seeing that, Yuuki immediately closed in - but it was too late. I'd already finished the chant and snapped, the sound ringing out. Instantly, a cloud of darkness exploded outwards, and I shifted to the side. I could kinda see in the dark - thanks to my skill and my special Cait Sith eyes - and I put that to good use. It helped that Yuuki activated a simple Sword Skill, thrusting straight forward; I had already ghosted to the side by that point, so all it accomplished was giving away her location. Smiling grimly, I ghosted behind where the line had ended and drew back my knife. I just needed to slit her throat and the game would be -

With a crunch, Yuuki slammed her head back into my face. I don't know what happened, but maybe she caught a glimpse of the Moonblade as it went for her throat. Either way, she managed to avoid getting hit and surprised me with the pain. Staggering back, I jumped away automatically and avoided her follow-up strike as she tried to cut me in half. Shaking my head to clear out the dizziness, I grinned tightly as the smoke cleared, revealing Yuuki grinning widely. This was actually fun!

My blood was pounding, but I ignored it. I wanted a cool head for this, even if it was just to enjoy every last second of the fight. Circling Yuuki warily, I kept low to the ground; because of Future Step, I was able to avoid whenever Yuuki closed rapidly. I was never able to react fast enough to counter her charge, but for all her talent in close-combat she wasn't a survivor of Aincrad. She hadn't learned that sometimes it was better to use regular attacks and not Sword Skills. She was still using the beginner skills, too, and the motion to dodge those was ingrained in my body. As I dodged and tumbled, I would lash out with my feet or fists or Moonblade just to try to hit her, but she was always reacting a heartbeat before I could hit her and parrying my blows with a sweep of her blade, sending a shower of sparks flying.

Irritating. But fun!

After another failed attempt at a kick to her ribs I backed up, keeping my eyes trained on her. With a shout, she lunged forward and thrust - but I had already jumped high into the air, warned by the red line. She slammed into the pile of boxes behind me and they went tumbling everywhere, creating a small little corridor for us to fight in if we wanted to. Still, time to worry about that later. I fell with a silent snarl, exhaling as I flipped in midair and slammed my heel down. I only struck dirt as Yuuki lunged away, but I had the initiative and I wasn't going to waste it. Using the momentum from my fall I pushed forward, passing through the dust cloud, and struck with quick slashes of the Moonblade. I never managed to connect with the poisoned blade, her longsword would just seem to appear in my way, but the first few times my Dragontalons caught her off guard and opened a few wounds along her sword arm. By the time she managed to get her feet under her and push me back, I had evened our health levels.

She got back into the fighting stance she'd started in, and I grinned - before jumping backwards again, landing lightly on top of one of the boxes that she'd knocked down earlier. Step one: Know thyself. Step two: Know thy battlefield. I chanted the Smokescreen spell again and snapped, Yuuki lunging for me; instead of trying to circle for the backstab, I just went straight for the chest this time. Still, she managed to predict that, disappointingly, and spun with a slash that opened up a gash on my left arm. I hissed in pain and withdrew as an overhead cleave struck the ground where I had been only a second ago.

I grinned, resetting my guard as Yuuki used a powerful horizontal slash to blow the smoke away. She was grinning too, beaming from ear to ear. "This is more like it!" she crowed, panting slightly. "I knew you could put up a fight!"

I just laughed. "Not yet!" We circled each other, testing for weaknesses in guard or footing. Our opening gambits had been made, and I had the measure of my opponent by now. Time to start pulling strings to see what moves. I feinted to the left and shifted to a crushing uppercut with my other hand at the last second; Yuuki fell for the feint, confirming my suspicions, but was able to jump away in time to turn her near-disembowelment to just a light scratch on her armor. Still, if she'd been a heartbeat slower, that would have done some major damage.

Her lips twitched slightly as she rushed me, longsword flashing out as she twisted and spun. I gritted my teeth and dodged what I could, taking the damage from the rest but mitigating it by redirecting most of the force by blocking. She was faster than me and had better reach, but she wasn't the only one with reach! One particular strike was powerful, so powerful I was send skidding backwards; when she followed up the strike I braced myself and held my dagger with both hands to block better. Her sword crashed down and I grunted with exertion, but held my ground – and then Yuuki was the one being sent flying as I snapped my leg out and nailed her in the gut with a sidekick.

Our dance of steel continued, both of us twisting and shifting around each other. We fought to our own tempos; my beat was heavy and primal while hers was light and airy. I struck, she parried; she struck, I wheeled out of the way before spinning on my heel and kicking. Fights were usually over quickly, but this one had shifted to the second movement; they were fighting for dominance, but neither of us would fall to the other's rhythm!

I deliberately took a slash to the chest because it was an attack that had a long recovery time and flicked my right hand out. Two stone knives shot into the dirt in either side of her, spearing through her body and getting a cry of shock from her. I grinned - she was trapped! I dashed forward, sliding low to stab her in the chest, only to be booted away by a strong kick to the chest.

I grunted but recovered in midair, throwing a pair of Fire knives as I summoned my wings to carry me in a graceful arc. They streaked towards the stationary Yuuki, but she managed to surprise me by literally shattering the two spikes that were already holding her in place, tearing them apart. It did damage, but less than having two new holes in her body would have; the two knives I threw sailed past her as she twisted and ducked and struck the ground, exploding a little ways behind her.

I landed on the ground lightly and was immediately on the defensive as Yuuki pressured me with slashes and stabs. It was only Future Step that kept me from getting cut nearly in half, especially when she was in amazing form like right now. We were drawing the best out of each other and I loved it! This was a fight I hadn't had in a long, long time. I ducked under her last swing and jumped back to avoid the follow-up thrust, and looked around wildly as I realized I was in the box alley. Yuuki giggled and lunged toward me - and I slipped to the side before sending a heavy punch straight towards her chest. She wasn't expecting it and I made contact, though she was able to convert her slide back to an acrobatic cartwheel.

The second her feet hit the ground, I grinned wildly and snapped my fingers. Instantly, a red rune appeared from the ground and I laughed as the explosion rang out, sending a pillar of fire into the air. That time-delay spell was wonderful! Yuuki emerged from the side of the smoke, only lightly singed; she'd managed to somehow get out of the way with those instant reflexes of hers. The circle was just too small by itself and with nothing keeping them there. But step three of fighting was know thy enemy - and by this point I'd figured she'd fall for the feint and then dodge left.

She looked around wildly to find me, but all she had to do was look to the side; before she could react, even with her insane speeds, I had closed inside her threaten range to extreme close-quarters. She had just enough time for her eyes to widen before I slammed my foot down and unleashed a heavy punch with all my weight behind it, sending her flying across the arena. She slammed into the nearby wall, falling to the ground flat on her stomach, and I straightened up to the cheers of the audience.

I felt frustration, something I was far too used to: even after all that, even after the triple blind, she still managed to barely sway back and dodge the edge of the Moonblade. But even though I hadn't landed the poison, I'd sent her flying. Tied up again, Yuuki. We both had to be low at this point.

The orchestra of the battle had reached the finale.

"Man," she called out as she pushed herself up and stumbled forward, a little dazed. I was approaching quickly, but I wouldn't get there before she caught her breath. "You shoulda fought like this the first time, Rythin! I knew something was different about you!"

I just grunted and drew more knives, these ones fire and ice. With a quick swing I launched them both at her; she cartwheeled past the first and slid under the second, the explosion and frost appearing on the wall behind her. I shifted past her, my back to the wall now, and she grinned. Sliding in front of me, she set her feet and beamed at me. I grinned back reluctantly; I was having so much fun like this, I don't know why. "Here goes!" she shouted before drawing back her weapon. It glowed with a purple light and I blanched; I knew this pattern.

Her Original Sword Skill.

I'd seen it before, but this was the first time facing it in person. I swore and shifted backwards one step, all I could spare before she unleashed it on me. I got my arm up to block the first stab, but it was powerful and knocked my guard away, leaving me wide open to the rest in the first series. Each blow pushed me back and I gritted my teeth with each hit. I just needed to worry about the last one, that was the killer! Her first five stabs finished, Yuuki unleashed the next set and again I managed to block the first before getting struck by the rest. I staggered backwards as she drew back for the killing thrust and began to bring my hands up to guard when my back slammed into something hard and unyielding. Shit! I twitched, hesitating for a heartbeat as I whipped my head to the side and realized a second too late that she'd slammed me into the wall, and that was enough for her to stab me before my guard got into position.

The weapon ripped through my stomach and slammed into the wall behind me. Still, I refused to lose to her... I grabbed onto the blade and held tightly. She was fully extended, out of my range, but I could close in. I'd done it before. Hissing at the uncomfortable feeling, I pushed myself down her blade until the crossguard was pressing at my stomach and reared back to slash her throat open. I swung -

-and my blade failed to connect as my body burst into flames an instant before I carved her throat open. I'd normally be irritated I died, but this was just so much fun... I wanted to hate Yuuki, like I had before, but I was having - gasp of shock - a good time fighting her. Gods damn it all.

In the end, it was Yuuki who fought Kirito; their match was insanely close. At the end, Kirito closed in on her, only for her to use that Original Sword Skill _again_ to counter his own OSS in an insane flurry of blows and then knock him flying. Kirito righted himself in midair by summoning his wings and streaking toward her; Yuuki seemed so shocked she wasn't even able to react as his sword drove toward her heart - and then the timer buzzed, the time having run out. Yuuki won the match and the title of Alfheim's Strongest Fighter by dint of having more health left when time ran out. Gods damn it all... Stupid timers. At least my battle _ended_. Yuuki celebrated with her guild while Kirito sheathed his sword and grinned at her.

For my part, I sighed, shook my head at Kirito's steadfast refusal to use two swords unless it mattered, and then went and collected what I'd won from my bet. Hey, I might be Kirito's best friend, but profit was profit.

The rest of February followed a similar pattern - go to school, end up in the nurse's office before the end of the day, and then after assuring her it was nothing too serious, just a case of food poisoning that made my stomach act up, go home where I'd finish my homework and then either help Asuna study or log into Alfheim. Din seemed to be staying with Kana, which was something I was grateful for; I didn't want to explain to the kid how I'd managed to screw everything up so badly. Still, my girlfriend and I were avoiding each other successfully, and the days passed routinely.

Then the girls went out to Kyoto for three days and two nights. I was surprisingly lonely; even when we weren't speaking to each other, I was still _aware_ of Kana's presence, like a warm fire that was maybe just a little tiny bit too hot. Even if it burned me if I got too close, I could still bask in its warmth from a distance. And Asuna and Sugu and the other girls helped too... And then they all just disappeared for three days.

I felt like I was freezing.

* * *

 **March 12** **th** **, 2026**

I lied back and stretched out indolently. Visiting Kyoto was a lot of fun, since it was so beautiful there... It was me and the other girls minus Shino on our trip that lasted a few days. We visited temples, wandered through the soothing bamboo forests, tried out all the local cuisine - where Asuna and Yuuki chatted nonstop through their meals, much to our combined dismay and amusement. This _was_ supposed to be a vacation, after all, so there wasn't really any point to getting irritated about it.

My phone vibrated and I pulled it out, irrational hope rising in my chest. Had Nick finally contacted - no. That hope died to ashes when I saw the message, and I shook my head before taking a deep breath. It wasn't Yuuki's fault he and I had gotten into a fight, no matter how much the irrational part of me wanted to blame her. "Hey, Yuuki," I said after the screen connected.

"Hi Kana," she said, grinning at me. A week or so after Yuuki joined our friend group, Nick must have hooked her into the virtual world that Yui and Din lived in when they weren't in ALO; no matter the cause, Yuuki was able to talk to us just like Yui and Din did. The little kids could also use the camera that rode on Asuna's shoulder almost constantly, though most of the time they let Yuuki pilot it around. "Can we, um... talk a little bit?"

I shrugged. "Sure, I guess." Rolling over, I propped myself up. I was alone in the inn room we'd rented; Asuna and the other girls were out taking a bath, and I was just relaxing in bed, reading a book. "What did you want to talk about?"

"It's about Nick," she said solemnly. I swallowed and sat up, giving her my full attention. "You're going out with him, right?"

"I am," I said, proud that my voice only shook a little bit. "What about Nick?"

Yuuki fidgeted awkwardly before finally sighing and looking at me. "You were there with Asuna when I warned her about Kazuto, right? How he was living in the virtual world, just like me?" I nodded. "I think it's kinda the same thing with him."

I frowned. "What do you mean? I know Nick plays ALO a lot, but…"

"That's not... aghh," Yuuki groaned, throwing her head back and staring at the sky. "I dunno how to explain it. Just be careful with him, 'kay?"

I sighed and stared off into the distance. "Yeah... be careful, huh? Sure..."

"What's wrong?"

I wrapped my arms around my legs. "Nick and I had a huge fight two months ago, y'know?"

"Sorry..."

"Not your fault," I told her. "I just need to talk ta someone about it, and ya happen to be here." My accent was starting to break through... I really was upset about it. "Asuna and the others are bein' super nice about not saying anything, but it's like..." I hid my face in my legs. "I feel like it's my fault because I didn't say anything. I knew he was acting weird, I just didn't bring it up to him." I'd resolved to use my information as a weapon, but then I just turn around and do nothing when Nick was in pain. "I just want to make up with him, but I'm not sure if I've screwed everything up beyond repair... I don't want to be alone again..." I whispered. I wanted to Nick to rely on me, let me take half of the burdens he carried. I could support him the same way he supported me! I wasn't some doll that he needed to protect and shelter...

"Why don't you just tell him all that stuff, then?" Yuuki asked me, and I realized I'd been ranting out loud. As I blushed, embarrassed that she'd heard me, Yuuki continued, "Sure, I think he's a jerk, but that doesn't mean that everyone else doesn't like him. And after fighting him in that tournament, I can kinda understand him a little, I guess. I'm pretty sure all ya need to do is talk to him and you'll sort everything out!"

Despite everything, I laughed. "You're absurdly optimistic, ya know?" I sniffled quietly and wiped at my eyes; I wasn't crying, but they were burning suspiciously.

"That's me!" Yuuki chirped, giving me a huge grin. "Right, I really just wanted to give ya the warning 'bout Nick. Keep an eye on him, okay?"

"I will," I said, smiling as I heard Yui and Din in the background. Yuuki glanced off-screen for a second and shouted something unintelligible. "Go on, play with the kids. I wanted to finish my book anyway."

"Gotcha. See ya, Kana!" With a wave, Yuuki ran off-screen, and I sighed as I was presented with a plain grassy background with cheerful shouting in the background. Honestly, that girl kept forgetting to close the connection. With a press of the button, I closed the connection and flopped back down on my bed. My pajamas were comfortable enough, so I didn't mind just getting comfortable in the blankets and turning to the page I was at. I was a little more composed than I had been before; Yuuki's words had put some part of me at ease that I hadn't been aware had been worried.

At the same time, what she told me was a little worrying. So Nick was living in the virtual world? I kinda get what she was saying, maybe. He always seemed a little bit more alive when he was in there, like this world wasn't really real to him. I wonder... what drew him to that alternate world? If he asked me that question, I could give him the answer; ALO and its like were gems of undiscovered information. I could learn and put the pieces together little by little and explore to my heart's content. There would always be new places to go, and new things to see. And just knowing that sparked a fire in me, a fire that pushed me towards fulfilling my dreams. It was corny, I know, but it was why I wanted to be an author, so that I could share new worlds with others.

But Nick... He wanted to be a game programmer, if I remember right, and that didn't really have anything to do with playing ALO. He didn't seem to be having any sort of enjoyment out of playing the game normally unless he was with us, and there wasn't anything that caught his interest like my research or Suguha's flying. From what I can tell, the only thing he got a kick out of was fighting! And he took those martial arts classes, and you'd think he'd get plenty of fighting there... Ah, it's not like it really matters in the long run, so long as I'm there to have his back when he needs me. It's just that, if I could figure out what he _wanted_ , I could help him get it.

I was broken from my thoughts by the girls returning to the room and put my book away with a sigh, knowing there was no way I was getting any reading done anymore. They were all wonderful people, and I was glad I'd been invited along - this was a great chance to get closer to the others, and I'd taken full advantage of the time together to get to know Suguha and Keiko and Rika better - but, well, those three were _loud_. I couldn't really focus on my book, especially since they always bugged me until I joined in on the girl talk.

But hey. Girl talk was fun!

* * *

 **March 22** **nd** **, 2026**

I sighed, letting my head fall on the desk. The other students had already cleared out for the day, leaving me alone in the room. Hells, the only reason I was still here was because I decided to finish up my work at school as per routine. One of the teachers had taken it upon themselves to issue me an emergency psych evaluation due to my frequent and all but scheduled trips to the nurse's office. That had been… fun, to say the least. I could fool them, though, just by putting on a different mask. At least the trips to the nurse had dropped in frequency to once a week, though I kept feeling terrible the rest of the time. It was less that I'd gotten used to having Kana behind me but so far away and more that I'd gotten used to feeling like my stomach was about to mount a charge on my esophagus.

I cracked my knuckles and sighed again, letting the sound draw out of me. I hated this feeling... My phone vibrated in my pocket and I pulled it out, raising an eyebrow when I saw that Yui was asking for a chat. "Hey, kiddo, what's up?" I mumbled, propping my phone up on the desk as I stood up, stretching until my spine popped. "You doing okay?" I hadn't been talking to her much recently, since she was always with Kazuto and Asuna, and those two were always with Yuuki. These chats were the most interaction I'd had with her for the past… month, I think.

"Actually, I was going to ask a favor, Uncle," she said sheepishly, and I went still. "Would you mind adding -"

"I know what you're doing, Yui," I ground out. "And I don't appreciate it." Ever since I'd connected Yuuki to the world Din and Yui used, Yui had been coming up with tiny little things for me to fix. Nothing really important, mind, but fixes here and there that would improve quality of life, or functionality, or things that they could do. In other words, busy work that would make me feel like I was doing something useful. I'd figured it out a few days ago after she asked if I could include some weather simulation. "I know you're a Mental Health Care program and I know that you're trying to make me feel better. But the manipulation doesn't work if person you're trying to manipulate is aware of what you're doing." I turned and stared at her. Hard. "I want you to stop."

"Uncle, I-I wasn't..." Her voice trembled and cracked. "I'm sorry!" She turned and ran off-screen.

I sighed, staring at the screen of my phone. Then my eyes narrowed. "It's rude to eavesdrop, you know," I said idly, and there was a brief sound of shock before Yuuki walked into view, looking a little sheepish.

"Sorry, Nick, didn't mean to listen in," she said, before giving me a very firm glare. "She's crying, y'know."

I gritted my teeth as I snarled under my breath. "I know! Damn it, don't you think I feel like shit already?" I didn't need her to tell me that I fucked up. Fuck. Fucking fucking fuck.

"You're a jackass, y'know that, Nick? I mean," Yuuki said, waving a hand, "you've got all these great friends and all you can do is snap when they try to help -"

That was it. That was the last straw that broke through the thin restraint on my anger. "Shut the hell up, Yuuki! Don't fucking preach at me!" I snapped, my voice rising with every word until I was shouting. "What the fuck do you know? You're everyone's favorite little darling, the poor sweetheart who's going to DIE in a few weeks. We can't be mean to you, because only an absolute MONSTER would be mean to a girl who's dying. Well guess what?" I spat. "I'm a monster. So shut the fuck up and don't try to make me feel like shit when I already DO!"

"What the hell, Nick?" Yuuki asked, eyes wide. "That was like, ten kinds of not -"

"I thought I told you to shut the hell up!" For a second, there was silence only broken by my harsh panting.

"No." My eyes widened and I snarled. Who was SHE to tell me no? "No, you need to hear this, Nick!" Yuuki pointed at me, her eyes hard. "You are surrounded by all these wonderful people. They're fantastic! Asuna, Kirito, Argo, everyone! I wish I could stay with everyone forever, but I can't. Because of something that wasn't my fault, I'm being dragged away from them before I want to leave!"

"I don't care!" I shouted. "They're choosing you over me! I get it, I really do. Nobody would want to be friends with a monster when they could be friends with someone like them, humans want human friends!" I laughed bitterly, covering my eyes with my hands as I slumped back into my seat. Deep down, Kazuto thinks I'm a monster, so does Asuna... I'm sure the others do, too, especially after how I blew up at Kana for, well, a stupid reason. "It shouldn't hurt this much to realize they've figured out what I am and decided to stay away... but it does. It hurts so, so much.

"Before Aincrad, I had _nothing._ I had no friends, nobody that I was close to. _Nothing!_ But I didn't care, because I had no idea how lonely I was. I'd isolated myself on purpose. And then I met Kazuto and Asuna and Kana and everyone else, and they broke through my shell and I suddenly had _friends_. I had _family_. And now? Now that they're gone and I'm alone again? I _know_ how soul-crushingly lonely I am, and it hurts." I have no idea why I'm telling all this to her. Maybe because she's dying. "But what do you care? You've got everything I want. You've got them, you've got happiness... I wish we were in each other's places," I snarled in an exhausted voice.

Yuuki gasped as I was preparing to continue ranting. "I'm dying, you insensitive asshole!" she interrupted me.

"I want to!" I exploded, slamming my hand on my desk.

Dead silence followed that little bombshell.

"Okay? In Aincrad, there were times when I wanted to die and the only thing that kept me alive was my sheer stubbornness and refusal to be beaten. Now, I don't even have that. The only reason I don't kill myself right now is because I couldn't do that to everyone. I couldn't leave them feeling guilty - and I know they would. Kana would blame herself, Yui would blame herself, Kazuto would blame himself, they'd all say 'We should have seen it. The signs were there.' and I can't let them self-flagellate like that."

I raised my other hand, grasping idly at the ceiling. I still couldn't see anything. "But if I were in your position... They wouldn't feel guilty. My own illness would have killed me, not myself. Hells, I'm terrified of death, actually. What happens? Does 'me' just vanish? The consciousness of Nick, of Rythin, just... goes poof, like it never existed. But maybe that's for the best. What good do I do the world right now, anyway?"

"Nick!"

"Stop saying my name! I HATE HEARING IT!" I screamed. Yuuki didn't reply. "Do you know? I'm a horrible, horrible monster. I'm broken." I chuffed a small chuckle. It didn't sound very much like a laugh. "Kana did it right, y'know? She fell in love with me after getting to know me, after learning what I was like. Asuna too. But me? I fell in love with Kana because she was there. Because I'd broken and she stayed by my side for all of one night. It's unhealthy, really, but I need her to feel whole." I knew it was a twisted, sick love, but it was love all the same. Still, she deserved better. "I want her to be happy, I really do, but that's only because it makes me happy to see her happy. My only reason for trying to make other people happy is because I want to be happy myself. How selfish of me, isn't it. I'm a monster, plain and simple. Gods, how I wish I could just fade away bit by bit. Do you KNOW how much I hate and despise myself?" I roared.

I let my arms fall as all that hate and rage just drained away, leaving me feeling empty. It wasn't the first time I'd felt empty like that, and my feelings would come back in time. For the meantime, I wanted to go outside – my throat was burning with the taste of bile. Normally, ranting like this would let me get rid of the venom building up inside me, but this time… Just more bile. "I really am jealous of you, Yuuki."

Heh. That was it. That's what I'd been feeling, why I'd felt like my chest was burning every time I saw her laugh with the others.

"You've got everything I wanted, and you don't even know." For all I know, I'm talking to myself. I haven't looked at my phone for a while. "I don't know how you do it, being so cheerful even when you've got a clock running down fast, but gods I wish I could be like you. You're dying, gods damn it, and yet you're far, far happier than I'll probably ever be... You're far stronger than I am, Yuuki. Asuna needs you for just a little longer, more than she's ever needed me. The others, too. Please, for as long as you have left, be their friend." I stood up, pocketing my phone. I glanced at the screen, but it was just showing the waving grass background of the world. At some point, she'd left the connection - or maybe she heard me anyway. Who knows. Who cares.

I stepped out of the room and made my way upstairs; it was quiet and empty, though I could hear a few people running around on the first floor. They seemed to be enjoying themselves, which was good... I guess. Not like it mattered to me. I opened the door leading to the roof and smiled; it was empty. Good. I wanted to be alone for a while. It would be easier that way. For a few seconds, I just stood there on the roof and breathed, staring at the blue sky and letting it swallow me. It's so strange, how staring at the completely empty sky makes you feel dizzy. Like I'm just some small part of something that's been going on before I was born and will continue on even after I die.

I hate that feeling. It makes me feel small and insignificant.

I much preferred watching people from above. Seeing them scurry about like ants… It made me feel a little better.

Eventually, I made my way over to the railing and leaned against it, my feet on the lower metal bars. I stared out over the fields where there were a few people practicing some sport, not that I could tell from here. My eyesight was good with glasses, but not that good. Maybe if I were a Cait Sith in this world too, but... No matter. They weren't important to me. It made me feel just a little bit better, being able to look down on other people as if they were ants, but it was just a stopgap measure. I needed to find some way of making up with Kana before the gap between us widened even further. I'd been avoiding her - no way of making it sound any better than that - because I was, well, scared. What if I messaged her and she never replied? Being cut loose like that, I couldn't take it. It would be the worst thing to do to me.

At least, somewhere along the line, I'd managed to figure out what I did wrong that made her so mad at me. If only I'd been able to sit down and say, 'Kana, could you help me?' then everything could have been avoided. Gods damn it all. I wouldn't be in this situation right now if I could have just realized that right after the fight. But I couldn't help it; if I relied on her, she'd get tired of me soon enough, and then cut me loose when she didn't want to deal with my shit anymore, or when she realized 'Hey, it's actively hurting my own mental health to talk with Nick'.

And I didn't want to bother any of the others; they were all doing something more important than listen to my problems. I had to handle my problems by myself or I'd just be a burden to the others. And gods know I have nothing to offer any of them, so I can't be a burden. Because that would just let them know I needed them more than they needed me. Again, leading to, 'Later Nick, you're on your own.' If this were Alfheim, I could give orders and they would follow, but here I had to ask for help and that would be making myself a burden. I knew they'd tell me I was being stupid if I brought it up, but there was no way I could keep my mind from playing tricks on me. And if I had to choose between release now at the cost of losing them and suffering now while keeping them as my friends for a little longer, I'd choose pain every time. I had to hold on to them for as long as possible before they left.

That pointless and useless terror that filled me when I started to text one of them... I hated feeling that way, but I did. I knew that I should talk to one of my friends, I knew that was the smart thing to do… But even if I knew what I wanted to say, even if it was something innocuous, I'd pick up my phone and then see the scene in my mind. They'd look at their phone and then a look of disgust would pass over their face. I could even see that moment, the way their lip would curl and their eyebrows would furrow. 'Oh, it's Nick… What does he want _now_?' they'd ask themselves, letting out a sigh of impatience. And every time, the fear that I was a burden, that I was just someone that they needed to help and help and help – that fear kept me from talking to them. And I got more and more isolated, which fed into that fear which fed the isolation which fed the fear… The only way to escape was to put my phone down and say nothing. To just suffer in silence. To run away from the battle. I know it's just paranoia and my fear of abandonment acting in concert, but... there's nothing I can do except run.

I sighed, flopping over the railing so that my arms dangled in the air. I hated it, feeling like a coward. Like I was running away. It was like there was a… an invisible shell around me. I could see, hear, and talk to everyone, but I was all alone in my bubble of isolation. I reached out, spreading my palm out. I could feel the smooth, unbreakable shell surrounding me… How could I break through it to the others? I wanted to be outside, out with the others where they were happy and warm and full of emotion. But there was nothing I could do. Not by myself. I needed to talk to Kana, apologize to her for trying to do everything myself, but at the same time I was scared of screwing it up even further. If something went wrong, I'd -

The door to the roof slammed open and I jerked upright, grabbing on to the railing. What the hells? "Nick!" I whipped my head over to stare at the intruder and about a half-second later was roughly tackled by someone with brown hair. When my vision stopped spinning, I realized Rika was straddling me, holding me by my shirt front, and I was lying on my back staring straight into her eyes. "What the hell were you about to do?!"

"I-"

"No! You have to promise! Right now!" Was she... Was she crying? Yeah. Yeah she was. Tears were streaming down her face and dripping onto my shirt. "You're not allowed to die! Ever! Promise me!"

"I promise, I promise!" I yelped. "What the hells, Rika? What's going on?"

Rika sniffled and buried her face in my chest, still holding my shirt. "God, Nick, Yuuki told me what you said, and I was the only one still at school, and... and... and..." She choked off a sob. "And then I come up here and you're about to jump and I just-"

"Wait, Rika, what are -"

"God, Nick, we've been worried about you," Rika sobbed, looking up at me. "You've been so distant recently, and then Yuuki tells me you were saying something about wanting to DIE. We care about you, you idiot, don't you get that?" I could feel her shaking. "We all love you. Maybe not the same way we love Kazuto, but we still love you, damn it! You're our big brother! I don't want to lose someone else!"

Stunned, I stared at her as tears fell from her cheeks. "Rika, I…" Then I shook myself; now wasn't the time to be surprised or speechless. I reached up and took her shoulders. "Hey, hey, Rika. Calm down, take a deep breath." She closed her eyes and followed my orders, taking a deep breath before letting it out slowly. "There. Feel better?"

"Mm."

"Okay, good." I smiled at her. "Now, I think there's been a bit of a misunderstanding going on here. Yeah, I said that to Yuuki and kinda meant it, but that doesn't mean I'm going to kill myself." I couldn't drag them down with me. They couldn't be affected by my disappearance.

"You weren't going to jump?" she asked, her voice quiet.

My entire train of thought derailed. "Wait, what? You thought I was going to jump from the roof?" She nodded. "I, uh. That's a first." I gently pushed at her shoulders until she scrambled off me, letting me sit up. "First off, no. I wasn't going to jump. I was just staring off into the distance while figuring out what to do about everything. Second..." I reached out and gave her a hug, resting my chin on her shoulder. "Thank you for worrying about me. It means more than you know."

"Nick, you idiot," Rika mumbled, hugging me back. "Makin' me cry like this..."

I grinned. "I'm sorry. You look much prettier when you're smiling."

"Like you can tell the difference anyway, jerk."

"True," I laughed and pulled away; she was grinning, so that was progress. "It's okay, Rika. I'll be coming back soon. There's just one thing I need to take care of first, okay?"

She grinned and punched my shoulder. "That's for making me worry. And for leaving us alone." She waved her fist. "If you make us wait too much longer, I'm hittin' you again."

I laughed and rubbed at the spot where she hit. "Yeah, yeah, got it..." I hoisted myself up, wincing as my back protested. I hit the ground hard. "You gonna be okay here, or do you need me to stick around?"

Rika wiped her eyes and shook her head at me. "I'm not helpless. Get outta here, Nick." Laughing, I waved as I walked inside. The second the door closed behind me, I thunked my head against the wall.

You useless idiot. Scaring them even when you're trying not to drag them down with you. Still… some small animal part of me was pleased they were worried about me. Just knowing that could let me keep pushing forward.

...Now for the hard part.

* * *

 **March 29** **th** **, 2026**

I wasn't stupid, all evidence to the contrary aside; I knew we were closing in on the end of March.

So when Asuna called me in a panic, telling me that she'd just gotten news from the doctor, I wasn't surprised. Resigned, yes, but not surprised. I told her to let the others know and to leave contacting the people in Alfheim to me; after she ended the call, telling me she was going to visit Yuuki at the hospital, I cracked my neck and popped my knuckles. Time to call in a few favors.

After logging in and setting a course towards the town on the 22nd Floor, I opened up as many messages as I needed. To each of the races I had contact with - Sylphs, Cait Sith, Spriggans, Undines, Imps, and Salamanders - I sent a message of varying politeness basically telling them to come to Yuuki's favorite island on the 24th Floor and pay their respects and that I was calling in any favors necessary. Eugene's message was a bit more profane than the others, as well as a magnitude more terse, but the guy respected shows of strength and I was flexing my muscles a little bit. Alicia I was nothing but polite to, since I kinda liked the Cait Sith lord. Plus she always gave me access to the Cait Sith sunning beds and snack bars when I was working for her.

For the races I didn't have direct contact with, I called in extra favors among the major guilds; while simultaneously telling the leaders that had hired me to do some merc work to join in the procession, I told them to get in contact with the leaders of the three guilds I didn't know and tell them about the whole paying respects for Yuuki thing. That done, I smiled grimly and resumed paying attention to my surroundings. I was on the 24th Floor already, and flying toward Yuuki's island. Nodding, I increased my speed as I rocketed towards the island. The tree quickly rose through the mists and setting sun, and I angled my trajectory so that I could land among the branches of the huge trees.

I had expected it to be empty as a grave - pun relatively intended - and it was; the setting sun reflected off the water and provided the tree with a stunning backdrop. I landed among the tree branches and got comfortable, draping myself across one of the larger branches, one foot dangling. The flowers on the island had bloomed, covering the grassy banks with splashes of color. I had expected that.

I hadn't expected Yuuki to show up, eyes steely.

She stared at the tree trunk, waiting patiently. I think she knew I was there? Her eyes glanced up toward me, at any rate. I wasn't sure what she was doing, but whatever her goal was, it didn't involve me. So I didn't involve myself, but just sat back and watched out of the corner of my eye.

A few seconds later, a blue streak flew toward the island and I shifted uneasily. Asuna was here; that meant that the others would arrive momentarily. The blue glow from her wings faded as she landed lightly and stood there, watching Yuuki. Slowly, the Imp turned around and smiled at Asuna, her hair waving in the wind. "Thanks Asuna," she whispered as my sister smiled softly and walked toward her. I had to pay attention to hear her words. "I'm glad I got to see you again, 'cause I got something for ya. I can't believe I almost forgot about it."

"Really?" Asuna asked. "What is it you wanted to give me?"

"Oh, um, I still gotta make it," Yuuki whispered sheepishly. "Hang on a sec." She opened her menu and hit a few buttons before turning back to face the tree trunk. She gripped her rapier and I frowned. She was moving so stiffly... Not like how she'd been earlier this month when she fought me. This felt wrong. She shouldn't be moving like she's in pain... Yuuki's exhausted herself. She drew her sword and closed her eyes, motionless as a warm breeze swept across the lake. Suddenly she snapped open her eyes and stepped forward, screaming a war cry as she smashed the point of her sword against the tree time after time. Seven, eight, nine, ten... She drew her sword back and thrust forward for the eleventh strike with all her strength. A beam of light shot out from behind the tree and a loud explosion rocked the entire island. I shielded my eyes and waited patiently for the dust to die down.

When I stopped feeling the aftershocks of her insane strength, I opened my eyes to see her standing there, motionless. As I watched, the symbol of an Original Sword Skill appeared and pressed itself on a scroll of paper. Yuuki reached out and took the scroll - and then toppled to the side. She'd used up the last of her energy to recreate her Sword Skill so that she could pass it down to Asuna. "Yuuki!" Asuna shouted, racing toward her. Yuuki's blade fell to the ground with a clink, and I gritted my teeth; before Yuuki could hit the ground, however, Asuna had caught her in her arms and was kneeling.

Silently, I hopped down off my perch and picked up Yuuki's sword, examining it before wiping it off on my jacket. Without a word, I knelt by her side and placed the blade by her side. I stood up, fully aware that she was watching me, and gave Yuuki a nod before stepping back, sitting down against the tree trunk. "That's weird," Yuuki whispered, looking up at Asuna. "I feel so weak all of a sudden." She smiled. "I'm not in any pain or anything though."

"It's okay," Asuna told her gently. "You're just a little tired, is all. You'll feel better if you rest."

"Yeah...maybe..." Yuuki breathed slowly. "Listen, Asuna... take this. It's my Original Sword Skill." She started to lift her hand, but Asuna immediately drew away.

"No, Yuuki, I... I couldn't."

"Oh come on," Yuuki breathed. "I want you to have it... Open the window." Slowly, Asuna nodded and opened her status window. A few taps later, and a screen appeared in front of Yuuki; the Imp pressed the scroll against the pane and let go, and the scroll entered the window with a shimmer of light. A small message appeared, letting us know that it had been accepted. "Mm..." Yuuki mumbled, shifting back in relief. "I gave it a cool name. 'Mother's Rosario'. I-It'll keep you safe... when you need it."

A few tears dripped down onto her breastplate, and I clenched my fist. Times like these, I was supposed to cry, gods damn it all. I should be able to cry. Someone was dying in front of me, someone important to my family, and I should be sad... "Thank you... Yuuki," Asuna said through her tears. "I promise... I'll take good care of it. And, someday... when I leave this world, I'll make sure to pass it on to someone before I go." A day which will far, FAR in the future. "Your sword will live on... until the end of time."

"Thank you..." Yuuki breathed, her voice tight with exhaustion.

Yuuki smiled up at her, and I shifted, feeling horrible. I should be feeling sad, but I just felt nothing... Damn it all to hell. I hate my fucked up emotional responses. Sounds of fairies approaching made me look over, and I saw the other members of the Sleeping Knights rushing toward Yuuki heedlessly. They crouched, kneeling in a ring around her. "Oh, guys, come on," she said weakly. "We talked about this. You promised... no goodbyes..."

"Nah, you got it wrong," Jun said. "We're all here to cheer you up!" He reached out and grabbed her hand. "When you get to the other side, wait for us. Okay? We won't take too long, promise."

"What are you talking about?" Yuuki asked him, tilting her head. "If you get there too soon, I'll be pissed."

Nori approached and clicked her tongue twice, wagging a finger in admonishment. "You know the deal! You're hopeless without us! So, don't even try to argue. Just sit tight and..." Her bravado broke down, tears spilling from under closed eyes. "...wait... for us..." she sobbed.

"Please, Nori, don't cry," Siune said as Nori sobbed, her shoulders heaving. "We promised... we'd be strong..." Her voice was breaking too, and tears streamed down her face. Her stoic mask crumpled as her grief proved too much, and she reached out to place her hand on Yuuki's as well. The other Knights joined her, their own faces twisted by grief and tears.

Yuuki looked at all of them sobbing with a fond smile on her face. "I give up," she breathed. "You win. I'll wait for ya. But... take your time, ya got it?"

Siune and Nori placed their hands on the top of the pile. "Uh-huh," the Sleeping Knights got out.

I breathed out slowly, my breath shuddering. I hated it, I hated it, I hated it. I wanted to feel upset. I wanted to cry. I wanted to feel fucking GRIEF that someone so close to my friends - and me - was dying in front of me. With a rush of wind, the rest of our friends streaked toward the island and lined up; one by one, they approached Yuuki and placed their hand on hers, paying their respects to the legend that she was. Leafa, Kirito... Each of them gave honor to the dying Yuuki and then kneeled behind the Sleeping Knights. All except for Argo, who took a seat next to me.

A gust of wind sprung up suddenly, and everyone looked toward the town; a stream of green lights rose from the warp gate, twisting in the sky. It was joined by a stream of gold and a stream of black, those two coming from the outside of Aincrad, and I nodded. Sakuya and her Sylphs, Alicia Rue and the Cait Sith, Pallas and the Imps... Beside the Sylphs the Salamanders flew in formation, and the Pookas and the Leprechauns and Undines... "Woah..." Yuuki breathed. "Look at all those fairies..." The races of Alfheim flew together, clouding the sky as they all gathered above us.

"I'm sorry," Asuna whispered. "I had Rythin let them know... I hope you're not mad at us."

"Are you kidding?" Yuuki breathed. "Why would I be mad? There's so... many of them. It's like a dream," she whispered as player after player landed and kneeled in the dirt. "Wh-why are they here...?"

"Because of you," I rasped out, surprised by how hoarse my voice sounded. "They're here to pay respects to you, Yuuki. As the strongest swordswoman this world's ever seen, a once-in-a-lifetime miracle... There will never be anyone like you ever again, so we can't let you go without saying goodbye."

"It wouldn't be right..." Asuna breathed. "We're all praying for you... that your next journey will be to a place as wonderful as this..." Her voice broke near the end, to a whisper so quiet I could barely hear her.

I was struck by a sudden urge, one that I hadn't felt for a long, long time, and I pulled out the harp I always carried in my inventory. Slowly, I started strumming it... Aimlessly at first, but as I selected a song my fingers grew more assured and proficient. The haunting notes of the farewell song I'd chosen floated out among all of the assembled players, and I leaned my head back against the tree before glancing at Yuuki. She was looking at me, a small smile on her face, before she closed her eyes and sighed happily.

"...I'm happy," she breathed. "I'm so happy. Hah... you know, this whole time I thought, 'If I was born to die, what the heck was the point of me ever being born? I never made anything... or gave anything to anyone... All I did was waste drugs and hog that machine... and cause trouble for everyone. If all I get to do is suffer... and disappear in the end... it'd be better to just disappear right now.' I used to always think... 'Why am I alive? Why'd I stick around for... this long...?' But... y'know what? After all this time... I think I know why now... I might not have done much... but I'm glad I got to live. Because after everything, these last few moments, they're the best ever..." Her breath shuddered. "I'm surrounded by all my friends. And I got to end my journey... in the arms of someone I love."

Asuna grasped Yuuki's hand as tears rolled down her cheek. "Yuuki," she whispered, "I promise. I will see you again someday... in some other place... in some other world! I don't know how, but I will find you... And then, we can sit and talk, and you can tell me where you've been..."

A strangled sob broke through the music I was playing, and my vision blurred as my eyes started burning. My throat felt like it was two sizes too large, and I had no idea what was happening. I blinked, trying to see if that would fix the problem, and hot liquid spilled down my cheeks. I closed my mouth, gritted my teeth, but nothing would stop the tears from streaming. So... this was it... I'd forgotten what it felt like to cry over someone else... For someone else's loss... Even if I couldn't tell if I wept for Yuuki or because the world was taking something from me yet again, I wept. Silently, Argo drew next to me, leaning her head on my shoulder, and I rested my cheek on her head as I quietly sobbed. The shell had… cracked. It wasn't broken, but it was cracked. Thank you, Yuuki. For your final gift. To me, to the world.

Thank you...

* * *

 **April 4** **th** **, 2026**

The funeral was the next Saturday - the first Saturday of April. The day and location had been posted on the ALO forums, and it became an impromptu holiday for everyone that had been at Yuuki's goodbye. The line to pay respects stretched out of the chapel and into the streets; I saw Kazuto and Sugu, as well as Keiko, Rika, and Shino all in line to say farewell. I'd arrived earlier than most, acting as Asuna's ride, and she'd taken the chance to say goodbye before anyone could see her cry.

There were hundreds of people at the funeral, some in school uniforms and some in mourner's black. I'd chosen to wear my black dress shirt and tie to say goodbye; if the school didn't like my way of showing respect to a fallen hero, they could kiss my ass. Yuuki meant a hell of a lot more than their rules ever would.

Kana was somewhere in the crowd as well, though I hadn't been able to see her. Things were healing between us; after sharing grief together at Yuuki's death, that terror when I picked up the phone to call her was gone. The day after Yuuki died, I called her. We talked for a while, but we still hadn't gotten around to speaking about what happened - both of us danced around the subject, since it was a bit too raw for us to talk about. Still, I was able to make it through class without needing to vomit.

"Nick!" I looked over to see Kazuto waving me over with the Doctor... Kurahashi, I think his name was. I approached to say hello. "Good to see you," he said. "This is -"

"Yuuki's doctor, I'm aware," I said. "Hello again, sir."

"Ah, you're the young man who came to talk to Yuuki in January, aren't you?" he said. "Good to see you. It was a terrible loss."

"It was," I said quietly. "But she taught us a lot, sir. We were all grateful to know her."

"Nick," Kazuto said, "I was just talking with him about the Medicuboid. Apparently that communications pod that we cobbled together is pretty neat, 'cause he's trying to steal the idea!"

The doctor laughed. "You're the other half of the mastermind behind that wonderful device? I should have known. Was that why you were there with some story about writing a paper on the Medicuboid?"

Erk. Something on my face must have shown my surprise at getting caught, because Kurahashi chuckled. "Please, you're not the first person to lie to me. One of the first to do it so well, but when you've been around as many kids as I have, it's pretty simple to know when they're lying to you." He chuckled. "A word of advice? Make sure you don't reveal any knowledge you aren't told. You already knew Yuuki was using the Medicuboid when you arrived, and that's what tipped me off."

"If you knew, why didn't you stop me?" I asked him. I wanted to know.

"Because you were there for a reason," he said. "I could see it in your eyes. Besides, Yuuki didn't seem to mind your visit too much. After you left, that was the most spirited I'd seen her in a while!"

"Eh-heh-heh..." I chuckled uneasily. I could imagine just how 'spirited' Yuuki had been, and how she'd expressed that 'spirit'. "Anyway, that aside, I was the one who wrote most of the networking code for the pod. Kazuto did the hardware and stuff like that, and I handled the part that let Yuuki connect to it." It was kinda like a beacon of sorts, something that let Yuuki's Medicuboid send her brain waves there instead of somewhere like Alfheim. After Yui asked, I'd set it up so it was both that and a sort of signal router that sent the signal to the world that they used. That way, she could connect to Yui and Din's world without a problem and have some more people to play with.

"It's a wonderful piece of work," Kurahashi said, "but your friend here is stretching the truth a little bit. I'm not trying to steal it, merely…" Still talking to Kazuto, he started wandering off, probably toward where Asuna was - I think she was sitting on a bench over by the cherry tree - and I followed bemusedly.

We came upon Asuna and another woman laughing. "Hey," Kazuto said. "I... hope we're not interrupting anything?"

Asuna and the woman stood up. I took a closer look at her, something familiar pricking at me, and I blinked rapidly when I figured it out. That was Siune! But... shouldn't all the Sleeping Knights be in hospitals or something? Whatever, I'll ask Asuna for the details later. "No," my sister said. "But... wait, do you know Kirito and Nick, Doctor?"

"Sort of," the doctor said.

Kazuto grinned. "He's trying to steal the idea about that communications pod me and Nick whipped up."

Kurahashi laughed. "No, he's lying. I'm interested in its possibilities in full-dive medical tech. So, we've been e-mailing back and forth."

Kazuto nudged me in the ribs - that happened to be sore from Sugu's love and affection the day before. Fuck but that girl hits hard with her stick, though I'm pretty sure half of that was because she'd been worried about me. "I would have given him yours too, but you were kinda, uh, weird these past few months."

"I said I was sorry!" I hissed at him.

"That's great, all of you," Asuna said warmly. "Oh! What about the Medicuboid? Are you going to phase it out or were the trials successfully?"

Kurahashi smiled. "Glad you asked. They were extremely successful, and now we have enough data to proceed to the next phase. Soon, patients all over the country will have - er, I am so sorry about that, I can't believe I didn't say this first!" He turned to the woman. "Miss An, congratulations on your recovery. I know Yuuki would be thrilled with that news too."

The woman - Miss An, apparently, though I'll keep calling her Siune - smiled as she shook his hand. "Thank you for saying so. And congratulations on the trials! It's good to know what you learned from Yuuki will be used to help others... That makes me happy."

"Me too," Kurahashi said. "Yuuki was the first person to test the Medicuboid, and her name will always be remembered. If she were here," he continued, "she'd get an award for all her help. Along with the benefactor who made it all possible."

"Knowing Yuuki," Siune said as she wiped her eyes, "she wouldn't be too thrilled at getting an award. She'd say, 'What's the point of having it if I can't eat it?'"

The others chuckled. Then Asuna tilted her head curiously. "Um, er, Doctor? You just mentioned the Medicuboid has some kind of benefactor? I thought you said the government was paying for it."

He blinked. "Oh, well, yes, they are. But the initial designs were given to us for free from someone else. If I remember that correctly, I think her name was Doctor Rinko Koujiro."

Grk. I froze, an awkward half-smile on my face. Beside me, Kazuto stiffened, sucking in a breath from shock. The two females didn't seem to recognize that name, but I did. Oh, I did. "Wh-what's wrong, Kirito?!" Asuna gasped when she saw what happened. "Nick? Are you two okay?"

"I... I know her," Kazuto stammered. I shook myself and forced myself to breathe. Passing out wouldn't help anybody.

Though with a doctor literally steps away, I probably wouldn't have any lasting damage. …Well, _more_ lasting damage.

"How?!"

"I met her once," Kazuto said. "...Yeah, in fact, she was taking care of Heathcliff's body while he was diving! She was his head researcher... She helped him develop FullDive technology. You see? The Medicuboid's design... You know who invented it?"

"No way..." Asuna breathed. "It was Kayaba?!"

A sudden breeze sprung up and sent the cherry blossoms everywhere. "Doctor," I said as calmly as I could, "Would you do me a favor? Get me in contact with her."

"I'll see what I can do," he promised.

Good. Saves me the trouble of hunting her down myself. I needed something from her.

* * *

 **Holy crap. We did it. We made it through Season 2. WHOO.**

 **Alright, as usual, thoughts on the chapter, thoughts on the project, then thanks, so let's get started, shall we?**

 **First off, this chapter is the last chapter and wraps up most everything. There are some plot threads that needed more development, some that had development that was subtle unless you knew what you were looking for, and some that were pretty okay. Nick's emotional break at Yuuki's death was one of the more important scenes; he thinks he's broken on the inside, but maybe not as much as he thinks. I'm never sure how much of it is a defense mechanism for him to avoid admitting that he feels, how much of it is genuine emotional detachment, and how much of it is just straight-up lying to himself, but he couldn't lie this time.**

 **Nick's rant at Yuuki was, um… let's just let it go. We're just gonna not read too deep into that part of the story, hm? Got it? Good. As for Nick and Kana, they finally made up from their fight, which is good. Hooray for bonding over shared tragedies.**

 **Nick's main fear is still that the people he's close to are going to disappear on him. And, deep down he believes that it's his fault that they leave. Story time: Nick's backstory (well, that part at least) is… fairly accurate to my own. I was quiet as a kid and didn't like talking to strangers, but somehow while I was in… kindergarten, I think, I met my first best friend. He then moved away after three years. Then, I made a new best friend in third grade. He moved after two years. Then I made a new best friend in fifth grade. He moved at the end of the summer, go figure. Then, after withdrawing and not really making friends with anyone over all of middle school, I met my best friend in high school – she was a year behind me, but that was just because my birthday is just before the cutoff while hers is after (she's way smarter than me. Go figure, right?). Then I got in a huge fight with her my senior year over something she said (and she was right, by the way. I was just a brat and didn't want to believe her) and fucked** _ **that**_ **relationship up. Then I managed to (partially) patch up my relationship with her, only to IMMEDIATELY destroy it again through my own selfishness and stupidity. AND THEN (because we're not done yet) I got close to someone else my second semester of freshman year of college, only to learn that over summer break she** _ **got amnesia and forgot all about me and everyone else.**_

 **It's like my life is a fucking Monty Python sketch. My ability to make friends isn't dead, it's just pinin' for the fjords.**

* * *

 **Okay then, time to talk about the series as a whole. I like Caliber and Mother's Rosario, same amount as I like Phantom Bullet – that is to say, I like it a whole bunch, but not so much as the Aincrad arc of season one. Season one was literally the first anime I ever watched (excepting Pokemon, but I was too young to understand that I was watching anime. It doesn't count. Because I said so) so it's always gonna hold a special place in my heart as the trigger that sent me into depravity. That being said, I really like season two as well.**

 **Okay, let me just drag out my soapbox here…**

* * *

 **TALKING POINT 0: PREEMPTIVE STRIKE**

 **Yes, there will be a Nightblade IV. No, I'm not answering any questions related to it or whether or not I'm adapting the Alicization novels.**

 **Don't expect it for at least a year. Maybe two.**

 **(I'm going to get at least twenty private messages whining about Nightblade IV and/or the Alicization arc before that year is up. GO ON. FUCKING PROVE ME WRONG.)**

 **I'm also aware of the SAO movie, Ordinal Scale. Don't tell me about it, I KNOW. I'm also not answering any questions about whether or not I'll be adapting it.**

* * *

 **TALKING POINT 1: Nick and Kana's Fight**

 **They had a fight. It was inevitable, really. They genuinely adore each other, but Nick's just so damaged that he has difficulty expressing himself. Couple that with his intense desire to keep his loved ones safe and a habit of drawing into his shell, and Kana's passive nature when it comes to the information she wields, well, bad things happened.**

 **It was important for their character development that they had the fight. Nothing's so unbelievable as a couple that never fights; if you don't fight, you're not expressing yourself. Suborning one's desires and emotions for the sake of the partner is a dating no-no (as far as I'm aware. I'm talking out my ass for this talking point, so feel free to completely ignore me if I'm wrong) which was exactly what Nick was doing. Not that he's not good at it, of course. It's still unhealthy (like half of what he does, natch) and the toll it was taking on him finally made him snap. A combination of short tempers all around, a few poorly-chosen words, and that was all it took to spark the fire.**

 **Kana wasn't blameless in this either, of course, since she was one of the ones with a short temper; it also didn't help that she's still being passive with the information she has. She noticed Nick was having issues a while back, but she didn't say anything because she always just collected and never acted. She also didn't communicate that she wanted him to stop coddling her and so, well, everything went poorly. The point here is communication is key – it's less about what they fought about, and more that they fought because they couldn't talk about these things with each other.**

* * *

 **TALKING POINT 2: Nick and Yuuki**

 **Theirs is a strange relationship. He said some stuff that he didn't even mean to be insulting – he was asking her how she was so skilled when it was literally impossible (as far as he was aware) to be that good. She interpreted it as a personal attack similar to one of the ones the kids at her old school used. She reacted appropriately and he was a jackass in return, so that kinda sparked enmity between the two.**

 **That changed when Rythin helped the Sleeping Knights out at the boss fight entrance. He wasn't being a jerk, and he started respecting Yuuki instead of blindly hating her when he saw her fight. As for her part, she'd asked Asuna about him (off-screen, naturally) and Asuna'd explained a little bit of Rythin's personality. After that, it was more uneasy camaraderie than actual friendship, mainly because Rythin was jealous of how close she was with Asuna.**

 **Their fight at the tournament was when they connected; because their fighting styles were similarly acrobatic, it was like fighting a slightly different mirror. Rythin relied on battlefield manipulation and traps, while Yuuki preferred the straightforward high-power approach; regardless, they both had fun fighting. That was when the last of the actual hate died. Of course, Nick was still jealous of her because he felt like she was taking his friends away from him (not helped by the way he was avoiding them) and that kinda broke through during his rant.**

 **Nick's whole rant at Yuuki was something that was necessary; he'd been bottling up so much stuff that he was going to explode one way or another, and since he wouldn't let himself explode at his friends she was the next available target. Sometimes, all you need to get something off your chest is someone who isn't a friend. He wasn't right for doing this, of course, and he was a total asshole about it, but it was important for his character. As for Yuuki's reason for instigating, she liked him well enough to give him the scolding about alienating the people that cared about him, after all - even if she was insensitive and a bit rude about it. Give her a break, she's a kid and pretty much never had a real social life.**

* * *

 **TALKING POINT 3: Musical Accompaniment (Vocal songs referenced and appropriate background music)**

 **Chapter 1, when he pounced Leafa: bastardization of** _ **The Wonderful Thing About Tiggers**_ **. :3**

 **Chapter 4, when fighting the semifinals:** _ **unravel**_ **(OP to Tokyo Ghoul. English adaptation by Ky0umi)**

 **Chapter 6, when running through a war zone:** _ **On the Edge of the Forest**_ **by Mercedes Lackey**

 **Chapter 9, when teasing Kirito and Sinon: That old children playground song. You know the one.**

 **Chapter 10, when talking to Sinon about strength:** _ **Ignite**_ **(OP to SAO Season 2, Phantom Bullet arc. English adaptation by AmaLee. Seriously, go listen to her stuff. It's great.)**

 **Chapter 11, when fighting Death Gun:** _ **Megalovania**_ **from the Undertale Soundtrack. It's one of the few songs that can consistently send me into a bloodlust.**

 **Chapter 17, when on the date:** _ **Dating Start!**_ **from the Undertale Soundtrack. Why? Because why not.**

 **Chapter 17, when Kana and Nick are off-screen in her house:** _ **He, Or She?**_ **from the SAO Season 2 soundtrack. Heh.**

 **Chapter 25, when playing the funeral song: Something soft and melodic. Maybe the song that plays during that scene in the show?**

 **In general, when Nick/Rythin loses control during battle and starts going into a rage: Blu-bird, from the NieR soundtrack (guess which song can send me into a bloodlust!) and/or Alive from the Jekyll & Hyde musical.**

 **In general, when it's not any of the other specific ones: Anything you like, really – suggested listening is something from the appropriate segment of the SAO soundtrack.**

* * *

 **Alright, I think that's everything I wanted to say. So off to the thanks!**

… **Or, that's what I'd normally say. However, holy SHIT that's a lot of people that favorited, followed, or reviewed. I would give all of you thanks by name since I really am grateful for your time and attention, there's just far too many of you! So please, don't take it personally when I just give out a blanket thanks:**

 **To everyone that favorited, followed, and/or reviewed: Thank you for sticking around through this story! It meant a lot to have people read this thing. I never thought Nightblade would be popular, let alone have enough people reading it that I'd adapt season two. I started out doing this thing as a whim because I wanted to novelize SAO season one but needed an impartial viewpoint. …Fuck, everything spiraled out of control from there, didn't it. I sat down, wrote the first chapter, and then promptly lost control of my life.**

 **That being said, there IS one person I'd like to thank individually:** _Tesseract_ **, thank you for everything. Tesseract kindly let me use them in the story; even though I didn't exactly ask permission until after the fact, the only angry text message I got was because I made the wrong literary reference in regards to** _ **A Wrinkle In Time**_ **rather than because I included them without warning. Tesseract, there's no way I would have been able to complete this story without you, so thanks for everything you've done for me. I don't know if you're still reading this, but I'd like to hope so.**

 **(And remember, readers, the TvTropes page always needs updating!)**

* * *

Two weeks after the funeral, we all headed over to the park to have a picnic. It was a great day out, and the others wanted some way to celebrate. The cherry blossoms had all but disappeared, but there was still plenty of pink to be seen. It was a lovely spring day and I had no problem going outside. I needed some sunlight anyway.

Agil had graciously donated the food and drink; he brought a bunch of bags over to the picnic mat that Sugu had set up. "Need any help unpackin' all this stuff?" he rumbled.

Sugu grinned. "Sure! But only if you're not busy."

Off to the side, Klein was showing Rika and Keiko a picture on his phone. "Seriously, ain't she cute!?"

"Ehhhh..." the girls said, smiling awkwardly. Either Klein was bragging about his internet girlfriend or a new pet he'd adopted. It was... probably the second one. Please, gods, let it be the second one. I don't want Klein to reproduce. He's a bro, according to Kazuto, but... no. Just no. Besides, I'm pretty sure he's still 'dating' Skuld, and I don't want to even think about the mechanics involved with that.

"I got you a little gift!" Sugu said to Shino, handing her a bag.

"No way! You shouldn't have!"

Everyone was busy preparing for the party or chatting with each other, and I watched as I sat on the lawn, staring off into space. Unsurprisingly, Kazuto and Asuna were sitting off to the side, Asuna with that communications probe so that Yui could hang out with us, but there was one person that hadn't arrived yet.

Or, I amended that thought as I heard grass crunching under foot, she'd chosen to come sit by me first. "Hey, catling," I said without looking as Kana took a seat next to me. "Hey, Din."

"Hi Dad!" my son chirped. He was riding on a second probe that Kazuto had made at some point during the past two months, this one perched on Kana's shoulder.

"Hey." Kana and I sat in silence for a while. "I'm sorry," she murmured finally.

"What for?"

"For not saying something when I knew you were in pain. I just…" She swallowed and shook her head. "It won't happen again. I promise. I... I... There was something I could do, but I was too used to just holding information, and not using it myself. But from now on, I'm going to use it to help you. Promise."

I nodded and closed my eyes, just breathing for a while. "I'm sorry too, Kana. For… for not asking for help when I needed it. For withdrawing." It'd been three weeks since we patched things, but the wounds had been too raw to talk about what had happened. Now, though, they weren't as painful.

She shifted at that; if I had to guess, she was smiling just a little bit. Eventually, Kana turned to me and asked, "Nick? Why didn't you ask me for help?" As I thought about her simple question, I stared at Kana, her eyes shining and skin glowing in the sunlight, and silently sought comfort from her. As I leaned against her shoulder, the one without the probe, she gently coaxed me down until I was lying with my head on her lap. I glanced up at her, curious, and she smiled softly. "Just keeping you where I can keep an eye on you."

I smiled at her, but it slipped away quickly and I sighed instead. "I wish I could say I don't know, beautiful," I admitted as she ran her fingers through my hair. It was very distracting - welcome, but distracting. "But the truth is, I do. It's... hard to admit, but I'm incapable of learning my lesson the first time. Hells, I don't think I learned it the second or third time either."

"And what lesson would that be?"

I glanced up at her to see her smiling slightly. "You're dragging this one out of me, aren't you?"

"Are you saying you don't think you've earned a little karmic suffering?"

"I guess you're right." I closed my eyes and took the chance to organize my thoughts. "Well, I can tell you why it happened. I was already in a bad state from nearly losing Kazuto before Christmas. That should have blown over quickly enough, but then add that I got sick right after I..." I looked away. "...Right after I thought I'd failed you and let you down, my mind got locked in the bad state. Then, Asuna dropped the bombshell on me that she was going to transfer out, and was it really a surprise that I started getting paranoid about my loved ones leaving me? Handling things myself so I don't force people away is second nature to me by now, and I guess I just..." I shrugged helplessly. "I... I mean, I..." I don't know what I'm trying to say. Every word I'd lined up was out of reach. I knew that if I was ever in this situation again, gods forbid, the words would come, but for now…

Kana's fingers gently brushed my cheek to tilt my head back toward her, and I flushed at her light touch. Huh, I didn't even realize I _could_ blush.

"You're a silly cat, you know that?" Despite myself, I chuckled. "Nick, why don't you just tell me these things?" she asked softly. "I love you. Part of that means no matter what I'll support you. And I'm stronger than you seem to think, Nick... You can lean on me, I won't break."

"I don't want to put any burden on you," I said, starting to push myself up with one hand. "Doing that would just drive -"

Kana chose a very efficient method of making me shut up - that being to lean over and kiss me. Part of me noted that this was a very unfair debating tactic of hers, while another part just sat back and enjoyed her way of showing me how much she cared. Yet another tiny part noted with a slight bit of amused amazement exactly how flexible she was. That yoga was doing wonders. "I'll do that any time you start thinking we'll get mad if you ask any of us for help," she murmured when we finally broke for breath.

"Is that a threat or a promise?"

Kana smirked. "Can't it be both?" She leaned back and sighed, turning her face up to the sun. "It's a nice day out today, isn't it?"

"Yeah." I reached up and gently traced her jaw with the tip of my finger, smiling when a light blush rose in her cheeks. I think it's less where I touched and more that I touched at all. "Such a great view."

"Now, now," she said. "Not while others are watching." I smiled and let my hand drop, but just snuggled closer to get comfortable. "Hey, Nick? Are we good for that college in America?" I could hear her heartbeat.

"Yep," I said. "Got the message from Kikuoka a few months ago. We're starting late August, so long as nothing catastrophic happens over summer break. Problem is, the deal was that if he got us in, I worked that summer job for him, so..."

Kana sighed. "So you won't be around as much during the summer," she finished for me.

"Yeah." I smiled at her. "Look at it this way, beautiful. Any moment I can spare I'll spend with you, 'kay?"

She laughed. "I'm keeping you to that promise, Nick. We have _dates_ to go on." I shuddered, though I'm not sure how much of that was the mischievous smirk she sported and how much of it was self-preservation instincts at work. "But no matter what, I promise you I won't leave, Nick," she said, her smile softer. "I've got your back, forever and ever."

"Forever and ever, catling. Forever and ever."

Din coughed. "You're taking me along to America, right?" …I'm actually impressed. Even after she bent in half, the camera stayed on Kana's shoulder.

"Actually," I said in a thoughtful deadpan, "I figured you'd want to stay here with your girlfriend."

"Yui's not my -!"

"Nick, be nice," Kana said. Still, I thought it interesting that he automatically assumed that I was talking about Yui. Interesting and funny. "You know as well as I do that he's far too young to be thinking of such things." Din huffed a sigh, evidently glad that she was backing him up. "That comes after they turn thirteen, after all." I honestly don't know when it starts. I'd use myself for reference, but that wouldn't work since, uh, I'm not really the most normal person when it comes to that kind of stuff.

"Moooom!" Din wailed.

I laughed and sat up. "It's okay, Din, we'll take you with us. Besides, the server will reach around the globe. You'll be able to play with Yui whenever you want. Only problem will be that we're in a different time zone, which'll make meeting up in-game a little hard."

"We'll figure something out," Kana said. "But for now -"

"Hey! Love birds! Quit making out!" I blinked and looked at Kana, then both of us looked at Rika. She was shouting at Kazuto and Asuna, though by the knowing smirk she was directing those words at us too. "We wanna take a picture!" The others all started shouting for the two couples to come over.

I sighed. "So much for peace and quiet." I stood and offered my hand to Kana; she accepted it, and I helped her stand. Fuck yeah for martial arts training. "Let's get over there before our friends get arrested for disturbing the peace." Kana just giggled and tugged at my hand, walking by my side as I gently leaned against her.

I could do that, for a while.


End file.
